Wednesday, May 11, 2005

Platt's Oil: Council Meets Saturday, Awards Under Review; No Rejection Seen by Carvalho; JDA Secretary Says Meeting Is Tomorrow And Friday

What may be the most authoritative source in oil industry reporting, the respected Platts - founded by Warren Platt in 1909 - says this morning in a breaking news story on the Nigeria-Sao Tome and Principe Joint Development Authority block awards that natural resources minister Arlindo Carvalho of Sao Tome is assuring the publication that awards will go forward after a review is finished this week and presented to the nation's National Petroleum Council.

Many thanks to our source, who pointed out, "Platts quotes Carvalho, who is from Trovoada's party, as saying the key meeting of the oil commission is now scheduled for Saturday... ."
That contrasts with the assurances of swingingk, which have become laughable at this point. You can write swingingk care of IDModels at 110 Greene Street, Suite 702, NY, NY or email him at nick@IDmodels.com to express your anger at his stream of false alarms. That's Nick as in Nicolo, not as in Old Nick, we think.

This Platts article is probably as authoritative a report as we will find anywhere in the world.

Here it is:


Platt's
Sao Tome to hold meetings on round despite oil adviser dimissal.
380 words
10 May 2005
11:35
Platts Commodity News/English

Paris (Platts)-10May2005/829 am EDT/1229 GMT -- Sao Tome & Principe president's decision to sack his oil adviser Patrice Trovoada will not derail ongoing negotiations in the much anticipated oil licensing round in waters shared by Nigeria and the tiny central African archipelago with high-level meetings planned this weekend, Sao Tome's energy minister Arlindo Carvalho said Tuesday.

"We have already started analyzing the applications. We will have a meeting with the National Oil Commission on Saturday," the minister told Platts by telephone from Sao Tome.

Carvalho, confirming reports that Trovoado had been dismissed from his post with immediate effect, could not comment on whether President Fradique de Menezes intended to replace his former adviser, whose father Miguel Trovoado, a former head of state, disagreed with de Menezes on oil policy.

Unexpected sackings and political tensions are not unusual in the government of de Menezes, who soldiers toppled from power in July 2003. In September last year, he appointed Damiao Vaz d'Almeida after sacking his former prime minister Maria das Neves after months of tension and hostility.

Paris (Platts)-10May2005/831 am EDT/1231 GMT
Meanwhile, an Abuja-based source told Platts Tuesday that the recommendations made by the Joint Development Authority to the Joint Ministerial Council had already been endorsed by president Olusegun Obasanjo and final awards now rested with the Sao Tome authorities.

"It is now up to the Sao Tomeans. The Nigerian side has been endorsed," said the source.

The JDA, set up to manage the shared acreage, had been expected to announce the awards last month but the round has been hit by delays, which have been blamed on disagreements between Nigeria and Sao Tome over signature bonus and other issues.

"After exhaustive deliberations," the JMC May 4 said it had in line with the prescribed Treaty provision, forwarded its recommendations to the Heads of States for endorsement.

While acknowledging the level of interest in the round, it appealed to stakeholders to "continue to show understanding in the process that has to be followed in arriving at such crucial decisions."

Several independents, both Nigerian and foreign, bid in the round, which included blocks 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.

In fact there were 26 bidders in the second, and far more than "several" were independents, so Platts may not be perfectly tuned at this point, as it is coming late to the story.

And hurricaneoffor quotes the JDA in a new update saying the Platts story and the natural resource minister are wrong. I would tend to discount the JDA report:

****Update****


Just spoke with Secretary of JDA. He had told me to call back today for an update. I asked him about the STP National Oil Commission meeting on Saturday and he said that was incorrect and they are actually meeting tomorrow and Friday. He laughed and said we should stop bothering him and "this will all be done in a few days" and we wouldn't have to bother him anymore. He said awards could stil be announced this week.

Looks like worst case early next week. But since Natl Oil Council is meeting tomorrow and Thurs then looks more like Friday or Saturday IMO.

You can call Secretary of JDA at 011 234 9 524 1069. If you have trouble getting thru you can try: 011 234 9 524 1063 and ask for Secretary of JDA.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Why put down Swinging-K when your own posts have been dead on WRONG 90% of the time Joe Shea?

Anonymous said...

So swingingk is a fashion model?? Never would have guessed he's in that world. I thought he was a high powered commodities trader on Wall st. Go figure! Seemed too macho to be in that industry.