Offshore Mooring to Reach $1.1B by 2021
The global offshore mooring system market stood at US$0.93 bn in 2014 and is predicted to reach US$1.1 bn by 2021.It is predicted to expand at a CAGR of 3.60% from 2015 to 2021, revealed a new Transparency Market Research report.According to the report, the market for offshore mooring systems is propelled by the rising subsea production and exploration and the consistent introduction of technologically advanced products. In addition, factors such as the growing demand for energy and the rise in the prices of gas and oil have also stimulated the growth of the offshore mooring systems market.In addition…
SBM Offshore to Pay $238 Mln in US Bribery Case
SBM Offshore NV, a Netherlands-based maker of offshore oil drilling equipment, and its U.S. subsidiary, SBM Offshore USA Inc, agreed to settle criminal charges of bribing officials in five countries and pay a $238 million penalty, the U.S. Justice Department said on Wednesday. The companies agreed to settle charges related to schemes lasting more than a decade involving bribery of foreign officials in Brazil, Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Kazakhstan and Iraq, in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), the Justice Department said in a statement.
Brazil Prosecutors Uphold Rejection of SBM Leniency Deal
Dutch oil-ship lessor SBM Offshore NV said on Thursday that Brazilian prosecutors have confirmed their Sept. 1 decision to reject a $328.2 million leniency deal to avoid prosecution for corruption related to contracts with state-led oil company Petrobras. The Brazilian Fifth Chamber for Coordination and Review and Anti-corruption has now referred the matter to the Higher Council of the public prosecutors office for further consideration. (Reporting by Wout Vergauwen; Editing by David Goodman)
NYK: Oil Production Starts at Third FPSO Unit
In July, a third floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) unit deployed by NYK for the BM-S-11 consortium** through a joint venture company started oil production in a pre-salt area off Brazil. This FPSO unit, FPSO Cidade de Saquarema, is owned by a shareholder consortium comprising SBM Offshore N.V. (Netherlands), Queiroz Galvão Óleo e Gás S.A. (Brazil), and a joint venture company between NYK (48.72 percent; head office: Tokyo; president: Tadaaki Naito) and the Mitsubishi Corporation (51.28 percent; head office: Tokyo; president & CEO: Takehiko Kakiuchi).
Offshore Brazil: Production Starts at FPSO Unit
In February, a second floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO)* unit deployed by NYK for the BM-S-11 consortium through a joint venture company started oil production in a pre-salt area off Brazil. This FPSO unit, FPSO Cidade de Marica, is owned by a shareholder consortium comprising SBM Offshore N.V. (Netherlands), Queiroz Galvão Óleo e Gás S.A. (Brazil), and a joint venture company between NYK (48.72 percent; head office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; president: Tadaaki Naito) and the Mitsubishi Corporation (51.28 percent; head office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; president & CEO: Ken Kobayashi).
Brazil Prosecutors Charge 12 in SBM Offshore Graft Scheme
Brazilian prosecutors on Thursday charged 12 people with a bribery scheme involving Dutch firm SBM Offshore NV, the world's top leaser of oil production ships, and state oil firm Petroleo Brasileiro SA . Police said they had four arrest orders as part of the scheme, dubbed "Operation Black Blood," though two of them involved suspects already in jail in the southern city of Curitiba, the epicenter of a broader investigation into price fixing and bribery on Petrobras contracts with engineering firms.
Brazil Charges 12 SBM Offshore Personnel with Bribery
Brazilian federal prosecutors on Thursday charged 12 people related to alleged bribery involving Dutch firm SBM Offshore NV, the world's top oil production ship leaser, and state oil firm Petroleo Brasileiro SA. Former Petrobras executives Pedro Barusco, Jorge Zelada and Renato Duque, and SBM executives Robert Zubiate, Didier Keller and Tony Mace were charged, as were former SBM sales agents Julio Faerman and Luis Eduardo Campos Barbosa da Silva, according to a statement from prosecutors. Reporting by Rodrigo Viga Gaier
SBM Offshore CEO Signs on for 4 More Years
Floating production services provider SBM Offshore N.V. announced that its chief executive officer Bruno Chabas has been reappointed to serve a second four-year term on the company’s management board. Chabas was reappointed today during a shareholders meeting for a term running into 2020, designated by the supervisory board to continue as CEO. Chabas joined SBM as COO in May 2011 and became CEO in January 2012.
Brazil Gives SBM Ultimatum in $250M Bribery Settlement
Brazil has told Dutch SBM Offshore NV, the world's top oil production ship leaser, to agree soon to a $250 million bribery settlement if it wants to regain its biggest client in the world's largest oilship market, a government source told Reuters. The ultimatum gives SBM several days to sign a leniency deal that includes financial reparation and other clauses such as cooperation with a corruption investigation. The settlement, which has been under negotiation for months, would lift a ban on the Amsterdam-based firm from bidding for new business with Petrobras, Brazil's state-run oil company.
Petrobras Vows Graft Probe; May Take Writedown
Brazil's state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA vowed on Monday to fully investigate a graft scandal that has knocked its shares lower and saddled President Dilma Rousseff's government with its biggest political crisis. In their first public comments since a former Petrobras executive was arrested in connection with the scandal last Friday, Chief Executive Officer Maria das Gracas Foster and other company leaders said they had hired legal consultants to investigate the allegations.
SBM Offshore Shares Jump as Bribery Case Settled
SBM Offshore NV has settled a bribery case with Dutch prosecutors for $240 million, including a $40,000 fine, sending shares in the Dutch oil platform leasing firm up more than 20 percent on Wednesday. The settlement, which was in line with provisions already taken, ends a two-and-a-half year inquiry into improper payments to government officials in Angola, Brazil and Equatorial Guinea by sales agents between 2007 and 2011. The settlement means that SBM Offshore will not be prosecuted in the Netherlands, but the individuals involved could face charges in other countries.
FPSO Contract Suspension Could Cost Petrobas US$15-bln
Profit at Petrobras, Brazil's state-led oil company, could be reduced by $15 billion between 2014 and 2018 if it had to suspend oil platform contracts with Holland's SBM Offshore NV, the company said in a securities filing. The potential reduction in profit is based on an estimate of the amount of lost oil and natural gas output and additional spending needed if Petrobras had to stop using the floating oil production platforms leased from SBM, it said in the Saturday filing. The estimate was made in response to a request by Brazil's Office of the Comptroller General (CGU), Petrobras said in the filing.
Petrobras Won't Seek SBM Offshore Bids During Probe
Brazil's state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA , or Petrobras, will not seek bids from SBM Offshore NV while the Netherlands-based oil production ship leaser is under investigation for alleged bribery in Brazil, said Maria das Graças Foster, Petrobras' chief executive, during hearings before a Brazilian congressional committee on Tuesday. SBM is the largest leaser of oil production ships known as FPSOs. Petrobras owns or leases the world's largest fleet of oil-production ships.
Brazil Senate Examining Petrobras Scandal
Brazil's Senate opened an inquiry on Wednesday into alleged corruption and mismanagement at state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA, a probe that could complicate President Dilma Rousseff's bid for reelection in October. A panel of senators will look into the costly purchase of a refinery in Pasadena, Texas, for which critics say Petrobras paid 20 times the market value. The senators will also probe allegations that Petrobras officials took bribes in exchange for steering contracts to SBM Offshore NV…
Petrobras Defends US Refinery; Still Calls Deal Bad
Brazil's state-run oil company, Petroleo Brasileiro SA, on Tuesday defended its 2006 purchase of a refinery in Pasadena, Texas, even as it admitted the deal caused the company to lose money. At a day-long Brazilian Senate hearing, Chief Executive Maria das Graças Foster explained that Petrobras, as the company is known bought the refinery in hopes of maximizing returns on Brazilian oil shipped to the United States. Despite making a good returns on its oil in the early years a world economic…
Brazil's Rousseff Says Petrobras Critics Distorting Facts
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff on Monday lashed out at critics of Petroleo Brasileiro SA, saying accusations of corruption, cost-overruns and stagnation at the state-run oil company were politically-motivated. "I won't tolerate any type of wrongdoing, criminal action, influence peddling or corruption of any type no matter who commits it," Rousseff said in a campaign-style speech at the launching of an oil tanker at a shipyard near Recife, Brazil. "At the same time I won't stand by quietly when people carry out a politically-motivated, negative campaign to hurt the company's image.
Update: Petrobras Denies Shelving Debt Sales
Petroleo Brasileiro SA on Monday denied shelving plans to sell debt in local and international markets later this year because of a series of scandals regarding the Brazilian state-controlled oil producer. A source with direct knowledge of the plans told Reuters on Monday that the company was worried that investor perception about the extent of the scandals could hamper demand for its debt or raise borrowing costs. The source requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue involving Petrobras, as the company is commonly known.
Petrobras Shelves Debt Sales in Wake of Scandals
Brazilian state-controlled oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA, which has been hit by a series of scandals, shelved plans to sell debt in local and international debt markets later this year, a source with direct knowledge of the situation said on Monday. Petrobras planned to sell as much as 3 billion reais ($1.35 billion) in so-called infrastructure notes by the end of June, the source told Reuters. The company also planned to issue more euro- and British-pound-denominated global bonds during the second half of the year.
