Petroecuador is committed to receiving a $173 million investment and improving gas production to 73 million cubic feet, through a tender for the Amistad field

After eight months of waiting, this morning Petroecuador officially announced a tender for the optimization of gas production in the Amistad field. The tender seeks to increase gas production from 21 million cubic feet per day to 73 million, a peak that would be reached in 2026. In addition, an investment of $173 million is expected from the contractor company (which will be paid with a fee) and the contract which will last 15 years, signed on November 8 of this year.

At an official event held at the Ecopark in Quito, attended by various representatives of interested companies, experts and government bodies, the companies were officially invited and informed about the basis of the integrated specific services contract with Contractor Financing, which includes drilling and completion well and the construction and expansion of the necessary facilities, within block 6.

According to the general director of Petroecuador, Ramón Correa, what is required of the companies is the drilling of 4 development and 3 overhaul wells. However, the exploration framework has been left open, so that after the upcoming relocation of the Santa Clara Reserve, exploration of three more wells in that second sector, which is currently not offered, can be started.

The Amistad field has the potential to produce three times more gas

In the same sense, Tomás Márquez, Petroecuador’s head of business transformation and special projects, said that Petroecuador can only sign this type of service contract, but not participation contracts, as this is a role that corresponds to the Ministry. Regarding exploration opportunities in Santa Clara, he said that if he had an agreement with the Department of Environmental Protection to relocate the reservation, he would make an addition to the contract for three more exploratory wells. Thus, a production of more than 100 million cubic feet per day could be achieved.

He explained that 25 companies were invited, and a smaller number of offers, from five to ten companies, is expected to be delivered.

The competition schedule was as follows:

Olade’s executive secretary, Andrés Rebolledo, was a guest at the event and spoke about the importance of gas at this moment of energy transition in the world and Latin America.

The expert believed that natural gas “will have a central role in Latin American parent companies of 21%.” And that until 2040, it will continue to be an important source of energy in the production of electricity”. For Rebolledo, Latin American countries should bet on monetizing these resources, taking advantage of opportunities to reduce greenhouse gases. In addition, this gas goes to the issue of electricity production, this more environmentally friendly fuel has a lot of space for transport and industry. “Its development is important for the countries’ energy security,” he said.

Meanwhile, Petroecuador technician Pablo León was determined to describe the gas potential of the Amistad field. It is indicated that there are proven reserves producing 38.9 trillion cubic feet; proven unproduced reserves of 1.7 trillion cubic feet and proven undeveloped reserves of 106 trillion cubic feet. Additionally, there are 241 billion cubic feet certified as potential resources within the Santa Clara Reservation.

On this topic, the Minister of Energy, Fernando Santos Alvite, commented on the history of the Amistad field and wished “good wind and good seas to interested companies”. In his speech, he recognized the significant gas potential of the Amistad field and called on private companies to “sharpen their pencils and make a good offer.”

After the event, however, the minister assured that the possibility of importing natural gas for this dry season, which would begin in October and end in November, is still open. He also commented that there is already an expert in the country who is analyzing the possibility that this imported gas can be transported using the facilities of the Amistad field. But he clarified that this will be done only until the new concessionaire manages to obtain its own gas from the Amistad field. However, he said it is also pending that Colombia can support the sale of energy for this dry season. To this end, President Guillermo Lasso himself is arranging the necessary steps with his colleague Gustavo Petro to obtain this support. If Colombia sells energy to Ecuador in this dry season, there would be no need to import gas, he explained.

For his part, Jorge Luis Hidalgo, manager of GreenPower, celebrated the launch, although he felt it had taken a long time.

He explained that although GreenPower is not a service company, they are interested in bidding and it would certainly be through a consortium. For Hidalgo, it is important that this event dispels several myths, including one that the authorities have repeated in the past, such as former minister René Ortiz’s claim that there was allegedly no gas in Amistad. Additionally, he said it would not be profitable to use Amistad’s infrastructure for imports, and said that a significant increase in production would only require immediate reconditioning, which could be achieved within the next three months.