Bullen Bay Terminal
The
Venezuelan state-owned PDVSA hopes to retain access to Bullen Bay
terminal after its lease expires in December 2019, but the Isla refinery
at Schottegat has lost strategic value for the company. This is
according to sources within the Venezuelan company.
The refinery barely operated in 2018 because of a lack of
feedstock, maintenance and domestic utility services. Normally the
facility processed around 220,000 b/d.
A senior Venezuelan energy ministry official said PDVSA no longer has any commercial or financial interest in the refinery. "Isla has lost its strategic importance as a refining center for our company," the official said. "PDVSA
can't supply the crude Isla needs, can't afford imported crude from
other suppliers and doesn't have the financial resources to maintain the
refinery even in nominal operating capacity."
"Bullen Bay is very important to PDVSA's export logistics, but
PDVSA isn't interested in spending up to $3bn to upgrade the refinery," official added.
Bullen Bay is a critical transshipment hub for PDVSA's export
operations, particularly involving shipments to China, India and close
ally Cuba. PDVSA also leases storage on the other Dutch Caribbean
islands of Aruba and St Eustatius and owns the 10mn bl Bopec storage
facility on Bonaire.
The value of the logistical network was highlighted in May, when US
independent ConocoPhillips imposed pre-judgment attachments on PDVSA's
Dutch Caribbean assets to force the company to honor a $2bn arbitration
award for the 2007 takeover of the US firm's Venezuelan assets. PDVSA
reached a settlement with ConocoPhillips in August and has complied with
an initial $500mn cash and in-kind payment, the US company confirms.
PDVSA is otherwise in default on billions of dollars in bond, commercial
and arbitration debt.
PDVSA’s export operations would be significantly impaired if it loses
access to Bullen Bay, according to a company official at the main
Venezuelan oil terminal of Jose. PDVSA lacks sufficient domestic storage
and terminal capacity to compensate for a potential loss of access to
Curaçao, although continued access to Bopec, Aruba and NuStar's St. Eustatius terminal would soften the blow.
Venezuela's current production of just over 1mn b/d and significant
oil-backed debtcommitments and barter deals leave little room to supply
crude to Curaçao, the Venezuelan officials say.
No comments:
Post a Comment