Year: 2020

Venezuela’s vice president and the head of state oil company PDVSA arrived in Russia last week on a trip aimed at deepening “strategic alliances,” Venezuela’s information ministry said, Reuters reported. Vice President Delcy Rodríguez and PDVSA chief executive Asdrúbal Chávez, as well as Science Minister Gabriela Jiménez, flew to Moscow to discuss possible new oil joint ventures with Russian energy officials and investors, Argus Media reported. Among the potential partnerships are the transfer of existing upstream and downstream assets to Russian firms as well as new projects, according to Venezuela’s…

A Chinese energy giant has bought the biggest independent producer of renewable energy in Mexico, giving the industry a vote of confidence even as Mexico’s authorities have moved to slow down private investment in renewable energy in the country. State Power Investment Corp (SPIC) of China, which has more than US$170 billion in energy assets globally, including in solar, wind, and hydrogen power in South America, has acquired Mexico’s leading independent renewables firm Zuma Energia, a spokesman for the Mexican company told Bloomberg in a press release, without disclosing the…

While many Gulf nations were already working to diversify their economies prior to the coronavirus pandemic, the subsequent economic downturn and collapse in oil prices has meant that governments in the region have had to reassess and – in some cases – accelerate their strategic plans. The implementation of social distancing measures and travel restrictions has impacted activity across all sectors in the region. With economies operating under capacity and global travel severely curtailed for much of the year, there has been a significant drop in demand for – and…

Final results from Pfizer Inc’s Covid-19 vaccine trial showed its shot had a 95 per cent success rate and two months of safety data, paving the way for the drugmaker to apply for an emergency US authorisation within days, it said on Wednesday. The vaccine’s efficacy rate, the highest of any candidate in late-stage clinical trials so far, was welcomed by experts who had already said that interim results showing Pfizer’s shot was over 90pc effective were very encouraging. Pfizer said there were 170 cases of Covid-19 in its trial…