QUITO, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell,
Mitsubishi Corp and Trafigura presented
bids for a contract to lift some 20.2 million barrels of
Ecuadorean crude between 2020 and 2023, the Andean country's
energy minister told reporters on Tuesday.
The country expects to pick a winner for the contract, which
is expected to generate $950 million in export income for
Ecuador, in the coming days, said the minister, Jose Agusto.
Ecuador invited some 51 companies to participate in the
auction, the first of its kind in more than a decade. The price
of the oil will be determined by a formula taking into account
the price of the country's oil sales on the spot market plus a
premium.
Shell, through its Shell Western Supply and Trading Unit,
proposed the highest premium, according to state oil company
Petroecuador.
Under the contract, Ecuador will deliver the winner four
shipments of 360,000 barrels each of Oriente-grade crude in 2020
and 2021. In 2022 and 2023, the country will deliver the winner
24 shipments of the same amount per year.
Ecuador produces some 545,000 barrels per day of crude.
(Reporting by Alexandra Valencia
Writing by Luc Cohen
Editing by Jonathan Oatis)