The State took -as it had announced- blocks 16 and 67 in the province of Orellana that were managed by Petrolia. He did it symbolically and the Minister of Energy, Fernando Santos, who had anticipated that at midnight on December 31 these blocks would pass into state hands, was also at the event, but virtually.
Petroecuador announced that with this government decision -which it qualifies as legal and sovereign- the income from the oil extracted from these two blocks will feed the General State Budget, during the operation carried out by the company. There are 14,000 barrels of oil that are produced in this field.
Ministry of Energy decides to reverse the contract for blocks 16 and 67 and generates a warning from Petrolia
“The reversal process is a legal process that does not stem from any conflict, but stems from the right of the priority State to assume and continue the operation of these strategic assets,” said Petroecuador manager Hugo Aguiar, when visiting these blocks. on January 1, 2023.
Minister Santos, for his part, said that it is a challenge for the state oil company and that he has confidence in the team led by Aguiar “which is bringing new winds to Petroecuador, of correction, of doing things calmly, but solidly.” Santos has also explained before that blocks 16 and 67 will be temporarily managed by the state oil company, that it is expected to put them up for tender as soon as possible and that Petrolia is invited to participate in that tender.
A few days after the contract expires, the Petrolia company threatened to initiate an arbitration claim against Ecuador, because according to their position their rights to request an extension of the agreement have not been respected. However, the minister considers that an eventual arbitration demand by Petrolia against Ecuador will not prosper, since he believes that they can sue, but that they have no basis for it. “First, they never deserved the ministerial agreement that approved the purchase of Repsol because they did not demonstrate their experience or their technical or economic solvency. Second, it is not the obligation of the State to extend a contract. This is optional for the authority,” Santos said in an interview with this newspaper last December.
Petrolia assures that it has notified a controversy before the Ministry of Energy for alleged breaches in the contract
December 31, 2022 was the term of validity of the contract for the provision of services for the exploration and exploitation of blocks 16 and 67 that were in the hands of Repsol and that later passed, through a sale of shares abroad, to New Stratus Energy (NSE) and in turn, the latter was later renamed Petrolia.
For this reason, the following day the Ecuadorian authorities went to these blocks. The Public Companies Coordinating Company (EMCO) reported that they began the year working from blocks 16 and 67. The president of the EMCO Board of Directors, Joaquín Ponce, also attended the site.
Petroecuador also reported that it will strengthen the relationship with the scientific stations of the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador (PUCE) and the Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ) that are located in the area of blocks 16 and 67 in Orellana, to work directly, as well as with local governments and civil society organizations. (YO)
Source: Eluniverso
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