Petroperu close to boosting crude supply for Talara refinery, president says
(Reuters) - Peru's state-owned energy firm Petroperu is negotiating with oil producers in the Americas and Asia to import about 63,000 bpd of crude for its newly modernized Talara refinery, the company's president told Reuters on Wednesday.
Pedro Chira, president of Petroperu's board of directors, said he expects to announce next week the winning companies after a 46% expansion of the refinery to 95,000 bpd.
"We are looking at options within Latin America and also in North America and Asia," Chira said at his offices in Lima. "I think that in the next week we would be able to announce who our suppliers will be."
The Talara refinery is currently in a start-up stage after a $5-B modernization that began in 2014, and the company aims to reach full capacity from mid-July, Chira said.
Peru currently produces about 41,000 bpd of crude while national oil demand is 250,000 bpd, according to official data, so it has to import crude for its refinery as well as fuel products for its market.
Return to profit in 2025
Chira, who declined to identify the potential crude suppliers, said that with Talara at full capacity the firm would be able to get its financials back on track and return to positive net profit from 2025.
The state oil firm lost its investment grade last year from ratings agency S&P, while Fitch downgraded its rating after it took out loans and issued bonds to finance the Talara overhaul.
The executive said Petroperu was evaluating a financing plan of some $1.2 B, including potential bonds and lines of credit, in case the firm faced any unforeseen cash flow issues.
"The company's intention is not to have state support for this 2023, which is a critical year," he said.
Petroperu is aiming to produce oil at Peru's largest oil field, block 192, from 2024, Chira said, after it was recently granted a 30-year concession. The firm is making a return to crude oil extraction for the first time since the 1990s.
Chira said the firm hoped to have regulator approval for a potential strategic partner, Canadian firm Altamesa Energy, this month to develop the block, which has faced some historical issues related to pollution.
Petroperu would also look to be involved in developing other lots in Peru's north, and lot 64 in the Amazonian region of Marañón, where they are carrying out an environmental impact study that would be complete in 2025, he added.
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