Month: November 2020

Pakistan may return $2b Saudi Arabian loan

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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan may return $2 billion Saudi Arabian loan and is looking for various options to secure more lending aimed at retaining gross official foreign exchange reserves at their current level of over $12 billion, Ministry of Finance sources told The Express Tribune.  The second tranche of $1 billion of Saudi loan is maturing next month and there is likelihood that the government will return the money – two years after the borrowings, the sources added.  The Saudi Arabian financial assistance package, originally estimated at $6.2 billion, had helped the…

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Turkey’s central bank chief ousted after lira plunges to record lows

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The Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has removed the governor of the country’s central bank from his post after the lira currency hit record lows, having lost 30% of its value since the start of the year. The decision to replace Murat Uysal as governor was made by presidential decree and announced in the country’s official gazette early on Saturday. It was not immediately clear why Uysal was removed. The lira closed at 8.544 against the US dollar on Friday after a touching record low of 8.58, despite dollar weakness as…

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From Billions To Millions: Canada’s Offshore Oil Disappointment

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The Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board (C-NLOPB) announced disappointing results this week from its call for bids on offshore oil parcels, according to a press release. Of the 17 parcels offered up in the Eastern Newfoundland Region, only one received any bids—Parcel 9—for which the winning bidder, BP Canada Energy Group ULC, committed $27 million in exploration work. For the petroleum board—and for Canada in general—that must be a crushing disappointment. In contrast, 2018 saw bids totaling $1.3 billion in the province. But it’s not just this year that…

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Trump Replaces FERC Chairman In Surprise Move

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President Donald Trump surprised many this week with the removal of Neil Chatterjee from the post of chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Chatterjee was replaced by the other Republican sitting member of the commission, James Danly. Chatterjee’s term was set to expire in June 2021, Axios reported, noting the chairman of FERC had said he intended to remain at his post until then. However, his departure might have been hastened by a policy statement that FERC issued in October. The statement concerns carbon pricing policies and encourages regional…

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Alberta Strikes Methane Emissions Deal With Federal Government

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Alberta has reached an agreement with Canada’s federal government to have its own provincial regulation on methane emissions, which will save the energy industry money and avoid red tape, the provincial government said on Thursday. Instead of having federal and provincial regulations on methane emissions, Alberta will now have only provincial rules on tackling methane emissions, whose largest source in the province is the oil and gas sector. Around three-quarters of Alberta’s methane emissions come from the upstream oil and gas industry. The finalized agreement with Alberta “will allow strengthened…

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