Bridas Corporation
Encyclopedia
Bridas Corporation is an independent oil and gas holding company based in Argentina. Since March 2010 it is 50% owned by China National Offshore Oil Corporation
.
in 2004. Bridas has focused in the South America Southern Cone and Central Asia. Its activities includes four principal areas of operations:
n energy sector in 1987, and secured its first large-scale contract (gas exploration rights in Turkmenistan
), in 1992. Between 1995 and 1997, CEO Carlos Bulgheroni
was personally involved in negotiations between Bridas and the governments of Pakistan
and Turkmenistan, as well as the ruling Taliban faction in Afghanistan
, to built the Trans-Afghanistan Gas Pipeline
. These negotiations were in competition with those undertaken by Unocal, and although an agreement with Unocal-led corporation CentGas
was reached, the deal was forfeited in January 1998 in favor of one with Bridas. Instability in Afghanistan delayed construction of the pipeline, however, and following the United States Invasion of Afghanistan in October 2001, the Bridas contract was rescinded in favor of the former one with Unocal. In 2006, Bulgheroni indicated interest in Bridas' involvement with the Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline project, which continued to be hampered by the ongoing war in the Central Asian nation.
The Bulgheroni family sold 60% of Bridas to Amoco
in 1997 for US$550 million, and in turn, established a joint venture
with British Petroleum, Pan American Energy; Bridas and BP purchased Houston-based Allis-Chalmers
, in 2006. The company sold its 40% stake therein and other assets, totaling an estimated US$5 billion (around half the company's total), in 2005 to China National Petroleum, in a bid to gain greater access to the growing Chinese energy market.
On November 28, 2010 it was announced that Bridas would acquire the 60% interest in Pan American Energy it didn't already own from British Petroleum for $7.06 billion in cash (cash deposit of $3.53 billion). The main reason for BP selling it is to raise money to cover costs assosicated with the Gulf of Mexico oil spill (the divesture brings the value of assets sold by BP to $21 billion since the oil spill).
China National Offshore Oil Corporation
China National Offshore Oil Corporation is one of the three major national oil companies of China....
.
Operations
Bridas Corporation was founded by the Bulgheroni family in 1948, and grew to become the second-largest producer of fossil fuels in Argentina (after the formerly state-owned YPF), with production of over 78 million boeBarrel of oil equivalent
The barrel of oil equivalent is a unit of energy based on the approximate energy released by burning one barrel of crude oil. The US Internal Revenue Service defines it as equal to 5.8 × 106 BTU...
in 2004. Bridas has focused in the South America Southern Cone and Central Asia. Its activities includes four principal areas of operations:
- exploration and development of oil and gas reserves and the production of oil and gas;
- marketing and transportation of oil, gas and oil products;
- gathering, treatment, processing and distribution of gas and power generation;
- drilling and well services.
Recent history and Trans-Afghanistan pipeline controversy
Bridas began expanding into the Central AsiaCentral Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
n energy sector in 1987, and secured its first large-scale contract (gas exploration rights in Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan , formerly also known as Turkmenia is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic . Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states...
), in 1992. Between 1995 and 1997, CEO Carlos Bulgheroni
Carlos Bulgheroni
Carlos Bulgheroni is a prominent Argentinian businessman.-Biography:Carlos Alberto Bulgheroni was born in Rufino, Santa Fe Province. He enrolled at the University of Buenos Aires, and earned a juris doctor in 1970...
was personally involved in negotiations between Bridas and the governments of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and Turkmenistan, as well as the ruling Taliban faction in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, to built the Trans-Afghanistan Gas Pipeline
Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline
The Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline is a proposed natural gas pipeline being developed by the Asian Development Bank. The pipeline will transport Caspian Sea natural gas from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan into Pakistan and then to India. The abbreviation comes from the first letters of those...
. These negotiations were in competition with those undertaken by Unocal, and although an agreement with Unocal-led corporation CentGas
CentGas
Central Asia Gas Pipeline, Ltd. was a consortium formed in the 1990s to develop a project to build the Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline from Turkmenistan's natural gas fields to Pakistan. The consortium had also considered an extension of the pipeline to the New Delhi area...
was reached, the deal was forfeited in January 1998 in favor of one with Bridas. Instability in Afghanistan delayed construction of the pipeline, however, and following the United States Invasion of Afghanistan in October 2001, the Bridas contract was rescinded in favor of the former one with Unocal. In 2006, Bulgheroni indicated interest in Bridas' involvement with the Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline project, which continued to be hampered by the ongoing war in the Central Asian nation.
The Bulgheroni family sold 60% of Bridas to Amoco
Amoco
Amoco Corporation, originally Standard Oil Company , was a global chemical and oil company, founded in 1889 around a refinery located in Whiting, Indiana, United States....
in 1997 for US$550 million, and in turn, established a joint venture
Joint venture
A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...
with British Petroleum, Pan American Energy; Bridas and BP purchased Houston-based Allis-Chalmers
Allis-Chalmers
The Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Co. of West Allis, Wisconsin, is an American company known for its past as a manufacturer with diverse interests, perhaps most famous for their bright Persian Orange farm tractors...
, in 2006. The company sold its 40% stake therein and other assets, totaling an estimated US$5 billion (around half the company's total), in 2005 to China National Petroleum, in a bid to gain greater access to the growing Chinese energy market.
On November 28, 2010 it was announced that Bridas would acquire the 60% interest in Pan American Energy it didn't already own from British Petroleum for $7.06 billion in cash (cash deposit of $3.53 billion). The main reason for BP selling it is to raise money to cover costs assosicated with the Gulf of Mexico oil spill (the divesture brings the value of assets sold by BP to $21 billion since the oil spill).