Latin America and uncertain place for investors despite its economic growth.

Last week was bad news for foreign investors in Argentina; the question is, will investors in other Latin American countries face similar uncertainties. Currently, countries such as Brazil, Chile and Colombia are experiencing rapid growth, which is viewed with envy by many Western governments. However, like in other prosperous countries throughout the world, the problem of providing secure and affordable, sustainable power supplies is never-ending.

Many countries in the region have opted for Hydro solutions which have met with opposition from environmentalists; others are looking at traditional solutions such as coal and gas. However, some countries have begun to take a late interest in exploiting none Hydro renewable technologies such as solar, geothermal, wave, tidal and wind. Already we've seen Brazil rapidly turned round its power sector so it is no longer the region’s Nigeria when it comes to affordable power supplies.

In Argentina, we are likely to see the countries desperate need for power to be solved in part by the recent discovery of shale gas deposits in the north-west of the country. However, how rapidly it can utilise such discoveries will depend on how all Argentina is viewed by foreign investors, as a result of the recent partial nationalisation of Spain's Repsol. This feature will look at the activities of investors such as International Power and technology providers such as Siemens in providing solutions to meeting the regions power sector needs.
Contact www.nicnewmanoxford.com

Striking it lucky

2 December 2011            

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Covering every corner of the globe, we profile the most promising offshore oil discoveries. Nicholas Newman charts a course, covering finds in the Beaufort Sea off Alaska's North shore, The Levant Basin, The Sea of Okhotsk, a treacherous find offshore of Angola and news of a massive find in Brazil's Santos Basin. http://www.offshore-technology.com/features/featurestriking-it-lucky---most-promising-new-offshore-oil-discoveries/

Discovery of good quality oil in south Santos Basin

November 23, 2011

Discovery of good quality oil in south Santos Basin Petrobras has confirmed the presence of good quality oil in well 4-SPS-91 (4-BRSA-1002-SPS),  in south Santos Basin, in an area known as Tiro and Sidon. The new well, informally known as Patola, is located at a water depth of 299 meters, some 200 km off the coast of São Paulo State and 3.8 km from discovery well 1-SPS-57 (1-BRSA-658-SPS), in the Evaluation Plan area containing wells 1-SPS-56 and 1-SPS-57 (1-BRSA-607 / 1-BRSA-658), former block BM-S-40. Preliminary analyses indicate that this oil is of the same quality as the oil found in   wild cat wells, around 36o API. The discovery confirms the potential for good quality oil in the shallow waters of south Santos Basin. The discovery was confirmed by cable test oil samples taken from the post-salt sandstone. The reservoir is approximately 2,160 meters deep. Petrobras will now go ahead with the activities and investments set forth in the   Evaluation Plan, including drilling other wells in the area, and will proceed with an Extended Well Test (EWT). EWTs are currently in progress on wells 1-SPS-56  and 1-SPS-57.

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The World is Desperate for Energy Engineers

By Nicholas Newman 18 November 2011

It’s not a scarcity of oil the world should be worried about but more importantly a desperate skills shortage of engineers. This is especially so for the global energy industry. For many jobs, the number of vacancies exceeds the number of skilled experienced engineers that are available. Already, such shortages are causing significant delays and costs for major projects including development of offshore oil fields off Angola.  Whilst in Brazil, the home of samba, tropical rainforests and traffic jams, this developed county is in a desperate search for engineers to construct 12 super tanker sized FPSO’s over the next decade. Such skills deficiencies are harming energy security, harming economic recovery and the ability of the world to meet its ambitious CO2 targets.

The only solution the energy industry has is to pay higher salaries and offer better conditions. Already, in Australia many engineers with energy related expertise are starting on salaries of AUS$20,000 a month. Even in the remotest desert locations of Australia or Iraq, the camps offer the best in accommodation and food. Ironically, subsea engineers are the amongst those in greatest demand. As to why there is a shortage of energy engineers, in part, it is due to lack of sufficient support governments, universities and industry to ensure adequate levels of people are trained every year. It is also due demographics, as the workforce ages and to the cyclical nature of the industry. Today, it is not helped that the sheer number of new projects worldwide that are being developed and coming on stream. In Australia, for instance the boom in mining of coal, iron ore and uranium is taking place at the same time there is also a boom in oil, gas, solar, power and unconventional gas projects. Because of poaching between the different energy sectors, pay and conditions have had to be drastically improved, in a desperate attempt to overcome such work force shortages.

Due to it being a sellers’ market for engineers, energy companies are having to becoming more sophisticated in recruitment practices. Increasingly they are relying on experts talent scouts to find, identify and select as well as maintain the loyalty of the engineers in this very competitive global market.  In addition, many such recruitment agencies such as Hays, NES Global are working on behalf of their clients Total, Shell, ENI to co-ordinate the development of the skilled candidates in their studies at universities around the world. In many new energy producers, governments are encouraging local content polices to ensure that the energy industry makes sufficient investment in overcoming the global energy sectors current labour shortages.
http://www.oxfordprospect.co.uk/Energy-Features.html