Hew Repsol! Welcome to New New Brunswick
The corporate world of Atlantic Canada is getting a new family member.
The Repsol group is coming to New Brunswick… equal partners with the Irving group in the construction and operation of a giant LNG (Liquified Natural Gas) terminal at Canaport, on the eastern boundaries of Saint John.
Since this is the Maritimes and we’re friendly folk, let’s be upfront. You Repsol guys sure are welcome!
In case you’re too shy to tell us about yourself, I thought I’d play the Welcome Wagon role and say a little bit about you. (You don’t have to send money… a simple ‘Thank you’ will be enough).
Repsol-YPF, a Spanish company, is one of the world’s Big 10 of privately-owned energy companies, with holdings in 25 countries, especially in Latin America. The company also has holdings in countries such as Iran, Libya and Russia.
Well, we Maritimers think that’s just wonderful. It will be good to finally get a big-time player on stage with the local players we’ve grown so fond of. Just like havin’ Todd Bertuzzi join the old-timers’ league down at the rink.
Now folks, Repsol may be a bit embarrassed about this, but this company has had a few tough times lately. Especially in Bolivia, the poorest nation in South America.
Repsol has put in a lot of money into Bolivia during the last 10 to 15 years. That’s because Bolivia has major deposits of natural gas (mostly) and oil. So Repsol has invested heavily in the development of those deposits in order to sell them at a profit to countries like the United States, nations that can afford to pay.
Unfortunately for our new corporate family member, the Bolivians elected a new government in December. The new Prime Minister claims there’s something wrong for Bolivians to have so many energy deposits and still be unable to afford natural gas themselves. Actually, the scene has been getting nasty. In February, the Bolivian customs service issued an arrest warrant charging the head Repsol executive with smuggling gas and oil out of the country.
Of course, our new corporate friend has denied the charge. The Spanish government has stepped in, asking for cooler heads to prevail. And even though Bolivian police raided the Repsol offices with arrest warrants for two company executives last Thursday (March 9), the executives weren’t there. So nobody has actually gone to jail. By Tuesday (March 14), reports from Bolivia said the executive had been questioned and were being 'detained' (probably not in jail but under house arrest of some sort).
So it’s been tough times. A couple of weeks ago, Repsol ran into more trouble when a major international credit rating company threatened to lower its credit rating.
But don’t be too concerned for our new friend. Everyone knows that doing business in Latin America is a bit tricky, especially since democratically elected governments have replaced the military regimes once so common in the region.
Still, it hasn’t been all bed and roses even in places such as the U.S., where Repsol trades on the New York Stock Exchange. Just last month, Repsol was charged in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York with “false and misleading statements to the market artificially inflating the Company’s stock”.
Even so, complaints like that are a dime a dozen… not much different than being charged with speeding. So we Maritimers have no reason to believe our new neighbour will be hurt.
Besides, in the last month or so, Repsol has been striking deals for exploration and development in Libya, Iran and western Siberia. As a matter of fact, they will be bringing that Siberian gas to the LNG plant outside Saint John en route to the U.S.
Obviously, these are good-hearted corporate citizens. Ones we will soon be proud to call friends.
Certainly, the City of Saint John and the Government of New Brunswick recognized Repsol’s potential. They even rolled out a wonderful red carpet of welcome, a sweetheart 25-year deal guaranteeing that the LNG partners will pay a flat $500,000 annually in property taxes rather than the normal $5,000,000 (plus inflation).
Repsol, we… whether in New Brunswick or anywhere in Atlantic Canada… welcome you. We are confident that, with your history, you will find your stay in our area very pleasant.
Not to mention lucrative!
The Repsol group is coming to New Brunswick… equal partners with the Irving group in the construction and operation of a giant LNG (Liquified Natural Gas) terminal at Canaport, on the eastern boundaries of Saint John.
Since this is the Maritimes and we’re friendly folk, let’s be upfront. You Repsol guys sure are welcome!
In case you’re too shy to tell us about yourself, I thought I’d play the Welcome Wagon role and say a little bit about you. (You don’t have to send money… a simple ‘Thank you’ will be enough).
Repsol-YPF, a Spanish company, is one of the world’s Big 10 of privately-owned energy companies, with holdings in 25 countries, especially in Latin America. The company also has holdings in countries such as Iran, Libya and Russia.
Well, we Maritimers think that’s just wonderful. It will be good to finally get a big-time player on stage with the local players we’ve grown so fond of. Just like havin’ Todd Bertuzzi join the old-timers’ league down at the rink.
Now folks, Repsol may be a bit embarrassed about this, but this company has had a few tough times lately. Especially in Bolivia, the poorest nation in South America.
Repsol has put in a lot of money into Bolivia during the last 10 to 15 years. That’s because Bolivia has major deposits of natural gas (mostly) and oil. So Repsol has invested heavily in the development of those deposits in order to sell them at a profit to countries like the United States, nations that can afford to pay.
Unfortunately for our new corporate family member, the Bolivians elected a new government in December. The new Prime Minister claims there’s something wrong for Bolivians to have so many energy deposits and still be unable to afford natural gas themselves. Actually, the scene has been getting nasty. In February, the Bolivian customs service issued an arrest warrant charging the head Repsol executive with smuggling gas and oil out of the country.
Of course, our new corporate friend has denied the charge. The Spanish government has stepped in, asking for cooler heads to prevail. And even though Bolivian police raided the Repsol offices with arrest warrants for two company executives last Thursday (March 9), the executives weren’t there. So nobody has actually gone to jail. By Tuesday (March 14), reports from Bolivia said the executive had been questioned and were being 'detained' (probably not in jail but under house arrest of some sort).
So it’s been tough times. A couple of weeks ago, Repsol ran into more trouble when a major international credit rating company threatened to lower its credit rating.
But don’t be too concerned for our new friend. Everyone knows that doing business in Latin America is a bit tricky, especially since democratically elected governments have replaced the military regimes once so common in the region.
Still, it hasn’t been all bed and roses even in places such as the U.S., where Repsol trades on the New York Stock Exchange. Just last month, Repsol was charged in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York with “false and misleading statements to the market artificially inflating the Company’s stock”.
Even so, complaints like that are a dime a dozen… not much different than being charged with speeding. So we Maritimers have no reason to believe our new neighbour will be hurt.
Besides, in the last month or so, Repsol has been striking deals for exploration and development in Libya, Iran and western Siberia. As a matter of fact, they will be bringing that Siberian gas to the LNG plant outside Saint John en route to the U.S.
Obviously, these are good-hearted corporate citizens. Ones we will soon be proud to call friends.
Certainly, the City of Saint John and the Government of New Brunswick recognized Repsol’s potential. They even rolled out a wonderful red carpet of welcome, a sweetheart 25-year deal guaranteeing that the LNG partners will pay a flat $500,000 annually in property taxes rather than the normal $5,000,000 (plus inflation).
Repsol, we… whether in New Brunswick or anywhere in Atlantic Canada… welcome you. We are confident that, with your history, you will find your stay in our area very pleasant.
Not to mention lucrative!
posted by John Steeves Reports at
4:15 PM
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