Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict
Across Ukraine, the government announced large-scale air alerts on Thursday, with explosions reported near Kyiv, though scant details were available. Kyiv warned that the entire country is under threat of missile attack, with Russian fighter jets airborne. Attacks on Thursday began as Putin was giving a speech about winning the war. Hypersonic Kinzhal missiles were launched from Russia into Ukraine during the speech in a show of power for Putin.
A Thursday meeting between the president of Guyana and Venezuela’s Maduro has accomplished nothing with regard to Venezuela’s declaration of ownership of Essequibo, the oil-rich region that represents some two-thirds of Guyana’s territory. Maduro claimed to be attempting a peaceful solution, though that solution can be nothing short of the annexation of Essequibo. Guyana reiterated that it has no intention of honoring Maduro’s claims.
Discovery & Development
Shell made its FID to increase production at its Perdido oil project in the GoM beginning in April 2025. The expansion project will include three more wells to its existing project, which will produce an additional 22,000 boepd at peak production. Perdido currently has a capacity of 125,000 at peak rate. The three wells will be drilled in the Great White unit, where Shell is operator with a 33.34% stake. Chevron and BP each hold 33.33% of the unit.
LNG Energy Group Corp (TSXV: LNGE) announced a discovery from…
Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict
Across Ukraine, the government announced large-scale air alerts on Thursday, with explosions reported near Kyiv, though scant details were available. Kyiv warned that the entire country is under threat of missile attack, with Russian fighter jets airborne. Attacks on Thursday began as Putin was giving a speech about winning the war. Hypersonic Kinzhal missiles were launched from Russia into Ukraine during the speech in a show of power for Putin.
A Thursday meeting between the president of Guyana and Venezuela’s Maduro has accomplished nothing with regard to Venezuela’s declaration of ownership of Essequibo, the oil-rich region that represents some two-thirds of Guyana’s territory. Maduro claimed to be attempting a peaceful solution, though that solution can be nothing short of the annexation of Essequibo. Guyana reiterated that it has no intention of honoring Maduro’s claims.
Discovery & Development
Shell made its FID to increase production at its Perdido oil project in the GoM beginning in April 2025. The expansion project will include three more wells to its existing project, which will produce an additional 22,000 boepd at peak production. Perdido currently has a capacity of 125,000 at peak rate. The three wells will be drilled in the Great White unit, where Shell is operator with a 33.34% stake. Chevron and BP each hold 33.33% of the unit.
LNG Energy Group Corp (TSXV: LNGE) announced a discovery from the Bullerengue Oeste-5, or BO-5, well located on the SSJN-1 block in Colombia after spudding in October. Initial production tests are currently ongoing, and production is already connected to the Bullerengue field facilities. LNGE has conducted production tests in the Chengue formation from BO-5 for 30 continuous days, delivering 1.0-2.5 MMcf/d of nat gas and 30-80 bbl/d of oil.
Neptune Energy successfully drilled two exploration wells, the Ofelia appraisal well, 35/6-4 ST2 in the Agat Formation in PL 929, and sidetrack 35/6-4 A in the Kyrre prospect. The first confirmed recoverable volumes between 16 MMboe to 33 MMboe, while the second discovered recoverable resources of gas between 11 MMboe to 19 MMboe. Combined recoverable volumes for both are estimated between 27 and 52 MMboe.
Papua New Guinea’s petroleum minister announced it has discovered a giant offshore gas condensate field with a 90% probability that it contains 3.6 tcf of natural gas.
Deals, Mergers & Acquisitions
Bolivia has signed a $450 million deal with Russia’s Uranium One Group (Rosatom is parent) to provide battery and EV components. The deal will see Rosatom invest in Bolivia over a two-year period to build a lithium plant in the country. Bolivia is said to hold 23 million metric tons of certified lithium reserves. Uranium One Group was one of seven companies competing for the contract.
Ratings firms are not expecting Occidental’s takeover of CrownRock to be as painful as its Anadarko takeover, with its plan to pay off debt from the acquisition within a year and boasting manageable risks. The impact of the deal is expected to be modest within a year of closing. Occidental will carry a $28 billion debt load at the close of the deal. But the company could sell assets and freeze share buybacks temporarily to cancel out half of the new debt’s principal within the first year, the company has said.
Shell has taken over the last 20% working interest in the Kaikias field in the GoM (in the Mars-Ursa basin) from MOEX North America. This is part of Shell’s strategy to expand its presence in the GoM where carbon emission levels are lower.
While Shell is expanding Perdido in the GoM and snapping up additional takes in its Kaikias field in the GoM, it is getting rid of its Linnorm gas discovery in the Norwegian Sea in a sale to Equinor. Equinor will hold a 50% stake after the deal, which is set to be finalized sometime in Q1. The discovery is estimated to hold 25-30 bcm of recoverable gas resources.
South Africa’s PetroSA has chosen Gazprombank Africa as its investment partner to restart the country’s Mossel Bay refinery. PetroSA said it is not worried about violating Western sanctions. The refinery has a capacity of 45,000 bpd, but it has been shuttered since 2020, citing a lack of domestic offshore gas
