Page 13 - LatAmOil Week 11 2022

LatAmOil ECUADOR LatAmOil

According to Noboa, Shell Western Supply and of Jamaica, is seeking a similar deal for 11 car-
Trading aims to purchase more Ecuadorean goes, he said.
crude oil by extending an existing three-year Bloomberg sought to confirm Noboa’s state-
contract that is scheduled to expire in Decem- ments but was unable to obtain comments from
ber 2023. The Shell arm has indicated that it is Shell, Marathon or Valero. Petrojam’s general
willing to pay a higher price, provided that it can manager Winston Watson said in a recent state-
take delivery at the terminus of the Heavy Crude ment, though, that his company was in discus-
Pipeline (OCP) system, which is capable of han- sions with Nigerian National Petroleum Corp.
dling larger tankers, he added. (NNPC) on a supply deal for 4mn barrels per
Meanwhile, he stated, Marathon is hoping year (nearly 11,000 barrel per day, or bpd) of
to start buying Ecuadorean heavy sour crude oil. The company is also “currently in dialogue
as early as June of this year and wants to pur- with Petroecuador and Ecopetrol in Colombia
chase 11-22 cargoes over a period of about 11 to establish term supply agreements,” Watson
months. Petrojam, the state-owned oil company added. ™

Petroecuador is currently producing around 400,000 bpd of oil (File Photo)

Petroecuador aims to double

oil and gas output in five years

ECUADOR’S national oil company (NOC) the development of the Pungurayacu heavy
Petroecuador has said it intends to raise its crude field and another involving the integra-
hydrocarbon production to 800,000 barrels of tion of work at three separate blocks in order to
oil equivalent per day (boepd) within the next boost their combined yields to 250,000 boepd
five years, double the current level of about over the next two to three years. Additionally, it
400,000 boepd. reported that it had identified six new prospects
The company unveiled its plans in a state- at Amistad, an offshore natural gas field in the
ment late last week, saying that it hoped to set Gulf of Guayaquil.
up consortia with private-sector companies to Petroecuador hopes to secure the govern-
develop new onshore and offshore fields. These ment’s support for its efforts, the statement
consortia will help attract $12bn worth of new noted. “In order to complete these projects
investment to the country and facilitate the within the planned deadlines, private capital and
development of associated gas as well as liquid adequate regulations to provide legal certainty
hydrocarbons, the NOC said. to those keen to invest in the hydrocarbon sector
Petroecuador said it expected these efforts will be needed,” it said.
to bear some fruit in the near term. By the end It also quoted Ítalo Cedeño, the general man-
of 2022, it stated, output is projected to rise to ager of Petroecuador, as saying that the company
495,000 boepd. was keen to see the country making better use of
The company did not specify which fields its natural resources. “There are approximately
would help boost production levels this year. 45bn barrels of oil identified and only 14% is
However, it did report that it was seeking inves- being produced, a figure that shows resources
tors for several different projects, one involving are not used properly,” he remarked. ™

Week 11 17•March•2022 www. NEWSBASE .com P13