Page 8 - LatAmOil Week 42 2022
P. 8

LatAmOil                                 TRINIDAD & TOBAGO                                          LatAmOil






















                                             The company’s Coho discovery recently began producing gas (Image: Touchstone)

                         It definitely intends to participate in the auc-  bidding process was moving forward smoothly.
                         tions and may submit offers for as many as three   “It’s probably the best package we have ever seen
                         licence areas, he told the Business Guardian   in Trinidad. Like, the data that’s available, ease of
                         newspaper following the announcement that   access – it’s the best package we have ever seen,
                         Touchstone’s onshore Coho discovery had   so it really helps to fine-tune the bid for sure,”
                         begun producing natural gas.         he said.
                           “With the success we got at Coho and Casca-  He did not say which blocks Touchstone
                         dura and at Royston, there is no question we’ve   might target for investment.
                         got lots of interest from our side in some of those   Trinidad and Tobago launched its onshore
                         blocks. We are for sure,” he commented. “The   and near-shore licensing round on July 11, 2022.
                         parcels came out a little different from what we   According to previous MEEI announcements,
                         thought they would be. That’s one thing that   the round includes the Aripero, Buenos Ayres,
                         has changed a little bit. But we will be definitely   Charuma, Cipero, Cory D, Cory F, Guayagua-
                         looking at, quite frankly, two or three of them   yare, St Mary’s, South West Peninsula Onshore,
                         for sure.”                           South West Peninsula Offshore and Tulsa
                           Baay also expressed appreciation for the   blocks.
                         quality of the seismic data made available by   The ministry will accept bids for these sites
                         Trinidad and Tobago’s Ministry of Energy and   until January 2023 and hopes to announce the
                         Energy Industries (MEEI) and said that the   winners of the contest the following April. ™



                                                     VENEZUEL A
       US reportedly making Chevron’s sanctions



       waiver dependent on Venezuelan talks






                         OFFICIALS in Washington have given clear   opposition group in the US capital.
                         indications they will not accede to the US major   During that meeting, the sources said, the US
                         Chevron’s request for permission to expand its   officials and the opposition representatives dis-
                         operations in Venezuela unless that country’s   cussed the options for making Venezuelan state
                         government agrees to resume talks with the   funds held in foreign bank accounts, especially
                         political opposition on free and fair elections,   in Europe, available for humanitarian purposes.
                         three sources close to the matter told Reuters   They also stressed the urgency of continued
                         earlier this week.                   talks on elections.
                           Washington began communicating this posi-  The State Department has partially con-
                         tion to Caracas on October 18, the sources said.   firmed the sources’ statements. Reuters quoted
                         On that date, they explained, three senior US   a spokesperson for the department as saying on
                         officials – Assistant Secretary of State for West-  October 18 that Nichols had met with other offi-
                         ern Hemisphere Affairs Brian Nichols, Ambas-  cials and members of the Unitary Platform in
                         sador for Venezuelan Affairs James Story and   Washington to discuss “progress on a return to
                         senior White House policy advisor Juan Gon-  negotiations with the Maduro regime in Mex-
                         zalez – met with Gerardo Blyde and five or more   ico City and the ongoing humanitarian, political
                         representatives of Venezuela’s Unitary Platform   and economic crisis in Venezuela.”



       P8                                       www. NEWSBASE .com                        Week 42   19•October•2022
   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12   13