LIMA�Following appointment of Peru's Energy and Mines Minister Carlos Herrera last week, consortia members expect to sign contracts Dec. 5 for development of the Camisea gas fields and the transportation and distribution of production.
Peru�s new government announced it will go ahead with the Camisea project, but the ministry needs time to review and prepare the relevant documents. The two consortia�one for the development of the fields and one for transportation and distribution of production�were originally to have signed the contracts Tuesday, but a delay was announced last week (OGJ Online, Nov. 24, 2000).
Herrera, who on Nov. 25 replaced former minister Jorge Chamot, is a mechanical engineer specializing in the electricity sector and construction of electricity generating plants.
He previously was regional coordination manager of state-owned Electroperu, which operates the 1,008-Mw Mantaro hydroelectric complex and other state hydroelectric plants primarily in southern Peru. Herrera also served as dean of the mechanical engineering faculty of the National Engineering University.
Shortly before the change of government, Chamot published regulations for formation of a committee to coordinate development of the Camisea project, including construction and start-up of commercial operations.
At the same time Chamot appointed Luis Ortigas, who headed the Camisea privatization committee, as representative of the energy and mines ministry and president of the new coordinating committee. That group will start operations after contracts are signed.
The committee includes the president of Petroperu, the state oil company; the president of Perupetro, the state oil agency; three representatives of the consortium for exploitation of Camisea fields in block 88; and three representatives of the concession for pipeline transport and distribution of Camisea gas and natural gas liquids.
The contracts require the companies to complete the project within 44 months of signing. That could put the completion date in mid-2004, although company engineers estimate they could bring the date forward to late 2003.
The consortia are formed by Pluspetrol, US independent Hunt Oil Co., and Korea�s SK Corp. for development of the Camisea fields; and by Tecgas, Hunt Oil, SK Corp., Algiers� Sonatrach, and Peru�s Gra�a y Montero SA for transport and distribution.
The Camisea reserves are estimated at 13 tcf of gas and 620 million bbl of condensate. The project is expected to cost $2.6 billion over the next 30 years, including $1.4 billion for construction and operation of the transport and distribution facilities.