Page 12 - LatAmOil Week 24 2022

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Iza also urged the Ecuadorean government not in place more and more policies of death, which
to allow the International Monetary Fund (IMF) don’t allow us to sustain our small economies.”
to sustain policy in the oil and gas sector. Quito For his part, Lasso described his approach
should set its own priorities on this front, he as a threat to Ecuador’s slow recovery from
asserted. the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. “We
“Mr. President, respond to the people on the will not allow the interruption of roads and
most urgent, necessary and painful issues,” he highways, we will not allow the takeover of oil
declared. wells nor of public service,” Lasso said in a social
He added: “We have had to resort to resist- media post on June 12. “I am willing to change
ance in view of the national government, putting Ecuador. We can’t stop.”. ™

ARGENTINA
Argentina investigates outcome of pipe

supply tender following minister’s remarks

ARGENTINA’S government has launched an for a price of $567mn to support the construc-
investigation of corruption allegations related tion of a new pipeline for shale gas from the Vaca
to a tender for the supply of 656 km of steel Muerta formation. The pipeline project is a criti-
pipes for the first phase of a natural gas pipeline cal component of the country’s effort to increase
project. gas output and exports, while also reducing
The allegations came to light early last week, costly imports.
when then-Production Minister Matias Kulfas Vaca Muerta, one of the world’s largest shale
raised questions about the outcome of a bidding plays, has the potential to be a key source of
contest held earlier this year by state-owned future gas supply for Argentina. However, it will
Integración Energética SA (IEASA). The only not be able to realise its full potential if the gas
company to make an offer to IEASA was the cannot be moved from the fields to the more
Luxembourg-based steel pipe maker Tenaris, heavily populated parts of the country where it
an affiliate of the Argentinian-Italian industrial is most needed – and from which it can eventu-
conglomerate Techint, and Kulfas claimed that ally be exported. ™
the cost of the project was likely to run high
because of the lack of competition.
IEASA insisted that Tenaris’ position as the
lone bidder in the tender did not constitute
evidence of wrongdoing. The company’s CEO,
Paolo Rocca, recently assured a group of local
business leaders that there was “no corruption”
involved.
Nevertheless, Argentina’s government has
sought to clarify the matter. On June 10, it sum-
moned Kulfas to court to clarify his statements
about corruption.
The minister responded to questions by
downplaying his earlier remarks, saying he had
not been trying to accuse any persons or institu-
tions of wrongdoing but was instead criticising
rival state-run organisations.
The government is now proceeding with an
investigation of the matter, and Kulfas has been
dismissed from his post. IEASA, for its part, has
decided to go ahead with a second tender for the
pipe supply contract.
Tenaris had offered to supply the steel pipes Tenaris offered to supply pipes for the first stage of the new gas link (Image: Telam)

P12 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 24 16•June•2022