Sulzer denies plan for new Venezuela business
Swiss contractor Sulzer says it has no plans to engage in new business activities in Venezuela, refuting assertions by Venezuelan government officials that the firm will repair refineries in exchange for heavy oil products.
"Sulzer is not currently engaged in any new business in Venezuela, beyond older contracts that are currently stopped pending overdue payments from PDVSA. Sulzer, a Swiss company traded in Zurich, is in compliance with all applicable sanctions and regulations," Sulzer said, alluding to US financial and oil sanctions on the Opec country.
Officials from Venezuela's oil ministry, presidential palace and state-owned oil company PdV told Argus yesterday that Sulzer would help to repair PdV's refineries in a barter arrangement.
PdV would pay for the downstream services with the supply of asphalt, fuel oil and petroleum coke, the officials said.
Consulted again this morning, the Venezuelan officials said talks with Sulzer have been underway since May.
The deal would complement a separate downstream agreement with China's Wison Engineering. Wison has not commented on its barter contract as recently outlined by Venezuelan officials.
Russian group Renova holds a 48.83pc stake in Sulzer, leading to speculation that Caracas is seeking to leverage Moscow's political support for the government of President Nicolas Maduro to resuscitate its refining industry. Russia and China are Maduro's chief international backers.
PdV has nameplate refining capacity in Venezuela of 1.3mn b/d, but almost all of it is inoperable because of a lack of maintenance, spare parts and feedstock.
The crippled refineries together with sanctions have dried up most fuel supply in Venezuela, aggravating the country's severe economic crisis.
Although the US sanctions on Venezuela have no formal secondary component, Washington has leaned on other countries to curtail or terminate business with the Maduro government, which most western countries deem illegitimate. They recognize Venezuelan National Assembly president Juan Guaido as interim head of state instead.
Traditionally neutral Switzerland formally recognizes only states, not governments, but a foreign ministry spokesperson said the authority of the democratically elected assembly "must be respected and the safety of its members and of its President, Juan Guaidó, must be guaranteed."
Sulzer is among a myriad of contractors, creditors and arbitration claimants that are owed billions of dollars by Venezuela's government and PdV.
Related news posts
Trump taps Vance as running mate for 2024
Trump taps Vance as running mate for 2024
Washington, 15 July (Argus) — Former president Donald Trump has selected US senator JD Vance (R-Ohio) as his vice presidential pick for his 2024 campaign, elevating a former venture capitalist and close ally to become his running mate in the election. Vance, 39, is best known for his bestselling memoir Hillbilly Elegy that documented his upbringing in Middletown, Ohio, and his Appalachian roots. In the run-up to the presidential elections in 2016, Vance said he was "a never Trump guy" and called Trump "reprehensible." But he has since become one of Trump's top supporters and adopted many of his policies on the economy and immigration. Vance voted against providing more military aid to Ukraine and pushed Europe to spend more on defense. Trump said he chose his running mate after "lengthy deliberation and thought," citing Vance's service in the military, his law degree and his business career, which included launching venture capital firm Narya in 2020. Vance will do "everything he can to help me MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN," Trump said today in a social media post. Like Trump, Vance has pushed to increase domestic oil and gas production and criticized government support for electric vehicles. President Joe Biden's energy policies have been "at war" with workers in states that are struggling because of the importance of low-cost energy to manufacturing, Vance said last month in an interview with Fox News. Trump made the announcement about Vance on the first day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and just two days after surviving an assassination attempt during a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Earlier today, federal district court judge Aileen Cannon threw out a felony indictment that alleged Trump had mishandled classified government documents after leaving office. By Chris Knight Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Waning German products oversupply evens domestic prices
Waning German products oversupply evens domestic prices
Hamburg, 15 July (Argus) — Germany's recent refined products oversupply, particularly in the south, is waning because of higher demand and technical issues reducing availability. Price differences within the country are starting to level out. Availability of heating oil and road fuels at the Bayernoil consortium's 215,000 b/d Vohburg-Neustadt refinery in Bavaria is restricted. At least one of the refinery's stakeholders is restricting loadings of E5 and 98 Ron gasoline and will probably continue to do so until the end of July. Planned maintenance works on a reformer have reduced production. Diesel and heating oil availability for spot sale are also restricted. A unit outage is affecting the refinery's diesel throughput, and a damaged heating oil tank at Vohburg has restricted loading capabilities since June. Term contracts are unaffected. Demand has increased across the board because of lower domestic prices, after Ice gasoil futures dropped week-on-week. Traded heating oil volumes reported to Argus last week rose especially strongly, by 28pc, and fuel demand also went up. By Natalie Mueller Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Iraq's Opec+ compliance challenges are not going away
Iraq's Opec+ compliance challenges are not going away
Dubai, 15 July (Argus) — Iraq's crude production fell in June but not by enough to stave off heat from the Opec+ alliance. State-owned marketing firm Somo said output dropped by 26,000 b/d on the month to 3.83mn b/d, excluding that from the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region. Production levels in the northern region are unclear, but are probably enough to take the overall country output to above the 4mn b/d limit imposed by the Opec+ agreement. Iraq has failed to meet this target in any month this year, and as the Opec+ alliance's least compliant member it agreed in May to make additional cuts to compensate for prior overproduction. The Opec+ secondary sources, which include Argus , put Iraq's output at 4.19mn b/d in June. Iraq's oil ministry on 14 July reiterated its commitment to meeting the 4mn b/d limit and reaffirmed its willingness to compensate for the excess production since the beginning of the year. Baghdad's mission is made more difficult by a lack of visibility in Kurdistan, where 400,000 of crude exports were taken off international markets in March 2023. Argus estimates output from the region at between 250,000 b/d and 300,000 b/d, much of which ends up in Turkey or Iran, but the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has stopped providing any oil-sector data. Baghdad says a drop in its crude exports is evidence of attempts to improve compliance — shipments from the southern Basrah oil terminal averaged 3.29mn b/d in June, down from 3.36mn b/d in May and 3.41mn b/d in April, according to Somo. Kpler data put Iraq's crude exports at 3.24mn b/d in June, the lowest since the beginning of the year. Somo said the amount of crude supplied to domestic refineries increased to 475,000 b/d in June from 441,000 b/d in May and 421,000 b/d in April. It said 10,000 b/d were exported to Jordan. By Bachar Halabi Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Singapore LNG bunker sales post fresh highs in June
Singapore LNG bunker sales post fresh highs in June
Singapore, 15 July (Argus) — Demand for alternative marine fuels rose further in June at the port of Singapore, with LNG demand for bunkering touching fresh highs. Total bunker sales in June rose by 8.7pc from a year earlier to 4.27mn t, according to preliminary data from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), lifted by a 2.7pc increase in vessel throughput in Singapore to around 10.11mn in June. But sales slipped by 11pc from a strong May. "It is [lower] LNG prices versus fuel oil prices, along with higher fuel demand, due to the longer passage through the Cape, [and] that is playing an important role," said a key Singapore-based LNG bunker supplier, referring to the increased demand from the rerouting of vessels because of attacks on shipping in the Red Sea region. Demand for bunkering LNG has increased this year, with Singapore recording 175,030t of LNG used to fuel ships in the first half of this year. This is more than a threefold increase from the same period last year when 36,900t of LNG was bunkered in Singapore. Demand for biofuel blends in the first half increased by 46.7pc versus the same period last year. January-June sales were 280,160t compared with 191,000t a year earlier. The blend of 76pc very-low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) and 24pc used cooking oil methyl ester, also known as B24, has been the first choice of alternative fuel among shipowners in Singapore, partly because of its drop-in character. Increased enquiries emerged for B24 in Singapore since April-May this year, with short-term tenders going to key shipowners planning voyages to Europe. "There are customers taking more volumes in H2 2024. Volumes wise [for the year, this] might not see a huge increase [but we] will just see more customers," said an international trader. Consumption of conventional bunker fuels has remained largely steady in Singapore, with the exception of high-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) where sales for June rose by 26pc compared with a year earlier to 1.56mn t. There was a 29pc increase for January-June this year against the 2023 equivalent. Firmer demand has continued for lower priced HSFO, particularly for vessel owners hoping to maximise the use of installed exhaust scrubber systems in handling alternative marine fuels. VLSFO consumption was down by 2pc in the first six months of 2024 versus the same period in 2023, with overall demand largely unchanged. Supplies have been higher in Singapore from this year's second quarter, which is expected to remain in the short term, said industry participants. Red Sea diversions Singapore has absorbed 40pc of the increased demand created by the Red Sea disruptions, data from the International Bunker Industry Association show. Demand in Singapore rose to 4.62mn t/month in this year's first quarter from 4.23mn t/month in 2023. Container terminals in Singapore were congested in the first half of the year because of Red Sea voyage rerouting. Container throughput at the city-state grew by 6.4pc from a year earlier in the first half of 2024 to 20.25mn 20ft equivalent units (TEUs) by June, according to the MPA. Singapore in May recorded a 7.7pc year-on-year increase to 16.9mn TEUs, said Singapore's transport minister Chee Hong Tat. Tonne-mile demand for tanker vessels is expected to grow this year. Greek crude tanker owner Okeanis Eco Tankers forecasts tonne-mile demand to grow by 5.6pc in 2024 and by a further 5.5pc in 2025. By Cassia Teo, Sean Zhuang and Mahua Chakravarty Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
![](/_next/image?url=%2F-%2Fmedia%2Fproject%2Fargusmedia%2Fmainsite%2Fimages%2F14-generic-hero-banners%2Fherobanner_1600x530_generic-c.jpg%3Fh%3D530%26iar%3D0%26w%3D1600%26rev%3D-1%26hash%3DFC2BEDE406483FEF5FDB9549159BAC11&w=3840&q=75)
Business intelligence reports
Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.
Learn more