Amerisur gets go-ahead to begin pumping crude through OBA pipeline

South America-focussed oil and gas producer and explorer Amerisur Resources has received all the required approvals to begin transportation of third-party crude via the 100%-owned OBA pipeline system to Ecuador, it announced on Tuesday.

The AIM-traded firm said access to the lower-cost route to market for Putumayo Basin production in southern Colombia had the potential to generate material revenues.

It said it would purchase oil from third-party producers at the existing Platanillo reception facilities based on the sales price at Esmeraldas, minus a negotiated margin.

The oil would be sold subsequently in a back-to-back arrangement through an existing oil sales agreement, with Amerisur saying it was taking no commodity price risk.

It explained that the OBA had a technical capacity of between 50,000 and 70,000 barrels of oil per day, with a currently-installed export pump capacity of 18,000 barrels of oil per day.

The minimum transport capacity through the RODA was 9,000 barrels of oil per day.

Amerisur added that it had reached agreement with another producer in the Putumayo Basin to start crude transportation.

Initial volumes were expected to arrive later in the month and build, as the system was proved, to around 2,000 barrels of oil per day through the second half of 2019.

Third-party oil would be received at existing Platanillo field facilities, where it would become Amerisur-owned, and was then transported via the OBA to the Amazonas Oil Pipeline System (RODA) to be dispatched from Lago Agrio to the port of Esmeraldas.

“These approvals create a consistent revenue generating opportunity from the OBA, further to material cost savings delivered since operations started in the fourth quarter of 2016,” said Amerisur Resources chief executive officer John Wardle.

“In addition, the ability to transport additional volumes, including third party oil through the Ecuadorian network was a significant factor in securing the Occidental farm-in deal.

“This represents a major step forward in the profile of the Putumayo Basin.”