ONLINE EVENT: Petroleum & Politics – South America’s Smaller and Emerging Oil & Gas Producers
Out of increased safety concerns regarding COVID-19, this event at the Inter-American Dialogue has been switched to a webinar. If you registered for the original lunch you must RSVP again to receive the webinar link.
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Political changes are shaping the outlook in many of South America’s smaller and emerging oil and gas producers. In December, the first shipment of oil left Guyana, where production is expected to surge to 750,000 barrels per day by 2025, and concerns about resource governance mix with questions about whether the results of this month’s election will lead to renegotiated contracts or other policy changes. In January, a major discovery was announced in Suriname, adjacent to Guyana’s deposits, and that country may be South America’s next hydrocarbon frontier. Though more experienced than Guyana, there are worries about corruption, and a presidential election is coming up in May.
Meanwhile, the end of 2019 was marked by political turmoil in much of the rest of South America. Mass demonstrations over corruption, inequality, and the cost of living dominated headlines throughout the region. In Bolivia, claims of fraud in the presidential election sent protesters from both sides to the streets and caused President Evo Morales to flee the country and an interim government to declare new elections for May. In Ecuador, the removal of a decades-old fuel subsidy sparked a social upheaval that briefly drove the government from Quito to Guayaquil and ultimately killed the proposed measure. And last September, amid congressional gridlock over his proposed anti-corruption reforms, President Martín Vizcarra dissolved Peru’s parliament and called for early elections. The socio-political movements sweeping these countries have generated great uncertainty about their future leadership and stances toward hydrocarbon development.
Join us for a webinar, co-hosted with the National Capital Area Chapter of the United States Association for Energy Economics (NCAC-USAEE), that will focus on how political developments are likely to impact the oil and gas picture in South America’s smaller and emerging producers.
AGENDA
12:00pm – 12:10pm |
Opening remarks
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Lisa Viscidi, Program Director, Energy, Climate Change & Extractive Industries, Inter-American Dialogue
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David Givens, President, National Capital Area Chapter, US Association for Energy Economics
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12:10pm – 12:50pm |
Guyana and Suriname: Prepared for the Boom?
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Panelists |
Geoffrey Dietz, Manager, Government Affairs, Total
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TJ Conway, Director, Research & Advisory, Energy Intelligence
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Ghassan Dagher, Independent Oil Consultant
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Moderator |
Lisa Viscidi, Program Director, Energy, Climate Change & Extractive Industries, Inter-American Dialogue |
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12:50pm – 1:30pm |
Unrest in the Andes: Socio-political Risk in Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru
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Panelists |
Álvaro Ríos, Managing Partner, Gas Energy Latin America
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Paulina Durango, Partner, Infrastructure and Energy, APREC Abogados
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Beatriz de la Vega, Partner and Peru Energy Leader, EY
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Moderator
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Nate Graham, Program Associate, Energy, Climate Change & Extractive Industries, Inter-American Dialogue
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