Nicaragua’s Institute of Energy (INE), the country’s energy regulator, is to launch an exploration and production tender for three geothermal blocks. The government claims the blocks – Volcán Casita-San Cristóbal, Caldera de Apoyo and Volcán Mombacho – comprise the largest geothermal resources in Central America. The concession is due to be awarded next April. Nicaragua currently generates only around 20% of its daily energy from geothermal sources, but has the potential to generate much more, according to the government. The country has been struggling with an energy crisis this year and has faced increasing power outages.
Category: Regions
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Ara Says Share Offering Back On
Mexican housing constructor Consorcio Ara says its planned global secondary share offering is back on the cards. The company postponed the deal at the end of May due to market volatility. A filing with the Mexican Stock Exchange showed that Ara was looking to sell up to 42 million shares, with an option extra of 6.3 million shares.
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Slim Says Peru Investment To Grow
Mexican business magnate, Carlos Slim, has said that he plans to increase investment in the Peruvian market over the next two years and has committed $560 million to the local cellular phone sector. Slim, the owner of Mexico’s Telmex and América Móvil, owns mobile phone operator Claro in Peru, the second-largest in the domestic market.
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Belize To Restructure Debt
Belize is to restructure its foreign debt and will likely swap its existing bonds and commercial loans for a single, amortizing bond by the end of this year. Currently, the country has six outstanding international bonds totaling $338 million, with most held by a group of no more than 30 creditors. It also owes $253 million in commercial loans. Of Belize’s total $1.1 billion debt burden, only $116 million is accounted for by domestic debt. Multilateral and bilateral loans account for $371 million. Last month ratings agency Standard & Poor’s downgraded Belize foreign currency credit rating from CCC- to CC, just two notches above a default rating.
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Televisa Denies New Bid For Univision
Mexican broadcaster Televisa has denied it will put forward a new offer for US Spanish-language broadcaster Univision. Grupo Televisa lost out in bidding to a group of investors that included Texas Pacific Group and Thomas H Lee Partners. The latter bid $12.3 billion for Univision following the $12 billion bid by the Mexican broadcaster.
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P&G Files Against Panamanian Xetal
Multinational Proctor & Gamble has filed a million-dollar lawsuit in New York against Panamanian company Xetal for trademark infringement. The company, the largest producer of consumer goods in the US, claims Xetal has pirated some of its products ranging from medicines to toys and clothing. Xetal is owned by businessman Fred Harrick.
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China And India Help Drive Latin American Growth
Latin America can thank the remarkable economic growth of China and India for around 10% of its total exports over the past 15 years, according to the World Bank’s chief economist Guillermo Perry, former finance minister of Colombia. In particular, over the past three years Latin American nations have benefited from the explosive growth of these two economies and their almost insatiable need for raw materials such as copper and oil to power their economic expansion.
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Initial Phase Of Bancafé Privatization Closes
The initial phase of the privatization of state-owned Colombian bank Bancafé, which opened in July, closed Sunday. During the phase, in accordance with Colombia’s privatization law, the bank’s assets were offered to the country’s pension funds, unions, cooperatives and other sectors of the so-called “solidarity” public sector. The second phase of the sale will take place on October 12 when the assets will be opened up to the wider investor universe. So far, eight banks have registered their interest in bidding: Bancolombia, Bogotá, Davivienda, Colpatria, Citibank, Santander, Sudameris and GE Money. The sale of the bank is expected to raise around $450 million and will give the successful buyer around 6% of Colombia’s banking assets.
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IFC Extends Trade Finance Program
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-sector arm of the World Bank, has extended its Global Trade Finance Program to the Caribbean. It announced that Banco Multiple Leon, the third-largest private commercial bank in the Dominican Republic, has become the first issuing bank to join the Program in the region. Through the program, the IFC “provides guarantee coverage of bank risk in emerging markets, allowing recipients to expand their trade finance transactions within an extensive network of countries and banks and to enhance their trade finance coverage”.
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Bolivia Appoints New Energy Minister
Bolivia has appointed Carlos Villegas, formerly the country’s minister of planning, as its new energy minister following the resignation on Friday of Andrés Soliz. Last month Soliz was censured by the opposition-controlled Senate for his handling of the nationalization of Bolivia’s hydrocarbons sector. Soliz was obliged by law to hand in his resignation following the censure but at that time it was rejected by President Evo Morales. This time Soliz’s resignation was irrevocable.