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Posted by toatie on the 5th Feb :-

bugsy
Former Frontera employees say they will not allow the company to continue working until payroll arrears
15:02, 03.02.2020

Former employees of Georgian Oil Company Frontera Western Georgia met with representatives of Georgian trade unions in Dedoplistskaro.

At the meeting they discussed their debts and future action plan. The issue of proper and impartial information of the society was also emphasized. In this regard, former employees of the company plan to hold permanent shares.

Employees of the oil company also objected to the contents of letters from US congressmen, which said the company had been disrupted . As they say, it is misinformation and misinterpretation of the fact.

“The Georgian government does not hinder American companies from doing business, but on the contrary, it does its best. This is evidence that the company has been operating in Georgia since 1997 unhindered, ”say former employees of the company.

According to them, the company will not be allowed to extract oil and continue working in Dedoplistskaro until the payroll arrears are paid.

The state's dispute with Frontera has begun in international arbitration. The 11-month debt of 84 employees of the company Frontera amounts to millions of GEL. Former employees have already filed a lawsuit seeking compensation against the company.

Posted by Wazza10 on the 5th Feb :-

Employees of the oil company also objected to the contents of letters from US congressmen, which said the company had been disrupted . As they say, it is misinformation and misinterpretation of the fact.
Employees wouldn’t have been privileged with such information about being hindered or not. IMHO this is being ramped up on the media to save face with the people of Georgia. No disrespect but the so called employees in the news clips sure don’t look like they’ve missed a meal lately and they definatly don’t look like front line troops. To many of them looking quiet and walking about in sunglasses. Looks like an OAPs outing.

Posted by Coggy on the 5th Feb :-

I don't believe this is staged or some form of Putin propaganda. From the photo's I've seen, the workers are of the same age group as the ones we met when the four of us visited Georgia a few years ago. I suspect most of the 84 employees on FRR's books are operatatives, who work shifts and live in the field for the time they are on shift. From memory, I think they work 5 days, then travel home after a fresh crew arrives. Sad case of affairs if true.

Posted by R8piloton the 5th Feb :-

I agree Coggy, but the statement about the lack of overalls is also false. All the guys we met were issued with overalls, hard hats and safety boots. They even supplied us all with a set.

Agenda.ge, 5 Feb 2020 - 11:19, Tbilisi,Georgia
Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani has met with US Senator Jim Risch, a chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Jeanne Shaheen, a ranking member of the Subcommittee on Europe and Regional Security Cooperation, in Washington earlier today stating that the senators ‘have very obviously seen the political will of the Georgian government to further strengthen democratic institutions in the country.’

The senators sent a letter to Georgian PM Giorgi Gakharia last week expressing concern over ‘recent events that indicate a backsliding from Georgia’s commitment to build the institutions of their democracy.’

We support Georgia and respect the aspirations of the Georgian people to the EU and NATO, their attitude to the US and the Euro-Atlantic partnership. We are sure the US support to Georgia will continue,” the Georgian Foreign Ministry has cited the senators as saying.
Zalkaliani said that it was a ‘very good meeting which one again confirmed the US-Georgia strategic partnership.’

It was a sincere talk between allies and strategic partners. I once again confirmed Georgia’s support to the US and they, for their part, expressed support for the strategic partnership,” Zalkaliani said.
Georgian FM has met with Republican Congressman Devin Nunes. Photo: Foreign Ministry press office.

Zalkaliani said that the senators and the US consider Georgia a ‘high-standard democracy in the region’ and the recent letters coming from the country were sent of high expectations.

I had an opportunity to inform them in detail about all the issues they mentioned in their letter, including the election issues and the ongoing talks between the ruling party and the opposition, as well as about the recommendations we receive from our partners regarding the election topic. I told them that Georgia remains committed to democratic values and its international obligations,” Zalkaliani said.
Zalkaliani has also met with a Republican Congressman Devin Nunes who said that Georgia contributes much to international peace and security and the US ‘is interested in continuing close cooperation with the Georgian government.”

Before leaving for Washington earlier this week Zalkaliani said that the meetings in the US will be an opportunity for “sincere communication with out strategic partner” on various issues, adding that “the meetings and the actions of the Georgian government will further strengthen the US-Georgia strategic partnership.”

The opposition say that the ‘critical letters’ received from US senators over the past several weeks are because of the actions of the Georgian government and the process ‘significantly damage the US-Georgia relations.’

However, Georgian top officials stated that the US senators likely received biased information and promised ‘intense and sincere communication’ with them.

Source - https://agenda.ge/en/news/2020/357

Posted by Mickthegambler on the 5th Feb :-

Part 3
The dispute is pending in The Hague Arbitration Court, which was addressed by the Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation and the State Oil and Gas Agency on January 15, 2018. On the other hand, Frontera demands the repayment of 84 months of its 11 months of debt. The opposition says the Georgian government is deliberately killing the US company and trying to expel it from the Georgian market. Employees are expected to receive salaries from the company.

In recent critical letters from US congressmen, the name of the company Frontera has been repeatedly voiced twice. First Republican Congressman Markuin Malin wrote a letter to George Gakharia, referring to the decline in FDI in Georgia, citing, for example, the oil and gas company Frontera, which was cited as one of the objects of harassment by the Georgian government.

Frontera Western Georgia is an American oil and gas company that has been seeking oil and gas in Kakheti, particularly in Dedoplistskaro since 1997. The company is a member of the American Chamber of Commerce.

In parallel to the arbitration dispute between the company and state agencies, 84 employees of the company are demanding 11 months of arrears , which is being held regularly by protests and sometimes by union representatives. Against this background, the opposition is actively discussing the contents of the letters of the US Congressmen, according to which the authorities are deliberately trying to obstruct the activities of the American company in Georgia.

An agreement with Frontera Resources Georgia Corporation on an equitable distribution of oil and gas production was signed in 1997. Frontera is demanding $ 3.5 billion in damages from the Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation. The dispute is pending in The Hague Arbitration Court, which was addressed by the Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation and the State Oil and Gas Agency on January 15, 2018. Georgian corporation and agency accuse US company of breach of contract. A foreign company in a lawsuit alleges that it was the victim of a breach of the terms of the same contract by the corporation and the agency.

Frontera's licensing area in Georgia is 5060 sq. Km and covers Dedoplistskaro, Signagi, Sagarejo, Gurjaani and Marneuli districts. The opening of the oil well in the Tariban Valley was attended by former President Eduard Shevardnadze. The former president said that foreign specialists had found a large supply of oil in Shirak, which would have been good for the economy, with Dedoplistskaro waiting for jobs.

The partnership is owned by JSC Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation's 100% shareholder, the Partnership Fund, which i

Posted by Mickthegambler on the 5th Feb :-

Part 2
The corporation is managed by the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development. Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation and Frontera are partners in another company. According to the November 2019 Registry Excerpt, Frontera Western Georgia LLC owns 50% of the corporation, with the remaining 50% owned by Frontera. Frontera transferred 50% to another company, but the public registry did not register the transfer.

Giorgi Botkoveli, the head of the Kakheti regional organization of the United National Movement, says that Fronta West Georgia had no problems in terms of salaries or functioning until 2012:

“There were years when there was the only company in Dedoplistskaro where people were employed, some were drivers and some worked in other positions. It was the only company that actually paid salaries in Dedoplistskaro at a time of extreme hardship in the country. Today we see that as the government changes, the company faces problems every day. Sure, Frontera is dishonest when it doesn't pay its employees, but does the government act honestly when the company interferes and tries its best to deliberately limit as many American companies as possible? This is the real face of today's government. If Fontera was a Russian company, it wouldn't have any problems. That's why it's Ivanishvili's- Says Botkoveli.

Nikoloz Janiashvili, the mayor of Dedoplistskaro municipality, said in a response that he had neither heard from the opposition anything "clever" nor had Frontera had anything in common with politics:

“It has been 11 months that the company employees have not been paid and for 11 months Frontera employees have been working without pay. When employees began a fair trial and filed a lawsuit, the company on December 17 fired 84 employees completely illegally without any compensation and old salaries. People are protesting this fact on a daily basis and demanding to pay off their debt and get back to work. In the 21st century, not 11 months, even 1-2 months for people to work without pay. Since the end of November, the company is no longer operational as 84 employees have been dismissed. There are only a handful of guards on the oil rigs, and former employees of the company say that because their numbers are insufficient, environmental pollution and catastrophe can occur.Says Nikoloz Janiashvili.
News Journalistic Investigation Articles
What is the basis of the dispute over Frontera
04.02.2020 Maya Mamulashvili 0 Comments #Frontera #Dedoplistskaro #Oil # Dispute
Oil company ,, Frontera Eastern Georgia " around the noise does not stop. Frontera is demanding $ 3.5 billion in damages from the Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation.

Posted by Mickthegambler on the 5th Feb :-

Link from tot iii
Oil company ,, Frontera Eastern Georgia " around the noise does not stop. Frontera is demanding $ 3.5 billion in damages from the Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation. The dispute is pending in The Hague Arbitration Court, which was addressed by the Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation and the State Oil and Gas Agency on January 15, 2018. On the other hand, Frontera demands the repayment of 84 months of its 11 months of debt. The opposition says the Georgian government is deliberately killing the US company and trying to expel it from the Georgian market. Employees are expected to receive salaries from the company.

In recent critical letters from US congressmen, the name of the company Frontera has been repeatedly voiced twice. First Republican Congressman Markuin Malin wrote a letter to George Gakharia, referring to the decline in FDI in Georgia, citing, for example, the oil and gas company Frontera, which was cited as one of the objects of harassment by the Georgian government.

Frontera Western Georgia is an American oil and gas company that has been seeking oil and gas in Kakheti, particularly in Dedoplistskaro since 1997. The company is a member of the American Chamber of Commerce.

In parallel to the arbitration dispute between the company and state agencies, 84 employees of the company are demanding 11 months of arrears , which is being held regularly by protests and sometimes by union representatives. Against this background, the opposition is actively discussing the contents of the letters of the US Congressmen, according to which the authorities are deliberately trying to obstruct the activities of the American company in Georgia.

An agreement with Frontera Resources Georgia Corporation on an equitable distribution of oil and gas production was signed in 1997. Frontera is demanding $ 3.5 billion in damages from the Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation. The dispute is pending in The Hague Arbitration Court, which was addressed by the Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation and the State Oil and Gas Agency on January 15, 2018. Georgian corporation and agency accuse US company of breach of contract. A foreign company in a lawsuit alleges that it was the victim of a breach of the terms of the same contract by the corporation and the agency.

Frontera's licensing area in Georgia is 5060 sq. Km and covers Dedoplistskaro, Signagi, Sagarejo, Gurjaani and Marneuli districts. The opening of the oil well in the Tariban Valley was attended by former President Eduard Shevardnadze. The former president said that foreign specialists had found a large supply of oil in Shirak, which would have been good for the economy, with Dedoplistskaro waiting for jobs.
The partnership is owned by JSC Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation's 100% shareholder, the Partnership Fund, which in turn is based on a 100% equity stake by the state.

Posted by Looed on the 5th Feb :-

Russian article - "Georgia responded to US threats. Strong."
"Not so long ago, a scandal erupted around the threats of some US Congressmen, published by them on the social network Twitter. The essence of these threats boiled down to the fact that “Georgia is moving further away from democracy”, “it is retreating from democratic values”, and since this is the case, then, as a punishment, “economic sanctions can be applied to Georgia”. And each new statement of the next overseas politician was almost identical to the previous one. As if they were written by the same person.

Amid these threats, the glee of the Georgian opposition has already begun. The collapse of the “Georgian Dream” seemed just around the corner. Moreover, the leader of the party “European Georgia”, one of the followers of Saakashvili, David Bakradze in his statement recognized Georgia’s dependence on the USA and Europe. He said that "the security and economic development of Georgia is entirely dependent on the Americans and Europeans." Apparently, he wanted to remind the current government that the orders of the owners must be followed. The US colony should serve its master.

However, on January 27, the Georgian government found something to respond to both US threats and opposition statements.

Georgian parliamentarian Beka Natsvlishvili held a press conference to invite employees of Frontera Resources, an American company that, according to US Congressmen, is being harassed by Georgian authorities. During the press conference, the deputy reminded the US representatives, who so care for democracy in Georgia, that a few months ago 84 employees were dismissed from the sensational company. However, even after the dismissal of salaries for a year of work, they were not paid. Year. No salary. And in the end - the dismissal. Summing up the conference, Natsvlishvili answered all the “advocates of democracy” that “Congressmen, making such statements on behalf of democracy, let them first call on their country's companies to respect human rights and the rule of law in Georgia. We are a proud people, we are not a colony where foreign companies can earn money by exploiting the citizens of our country. ”

At the same time, Georgian Defense Minister Irakli Garibashvili answered the opposition: “... The attitude shown by various political opponents clearly confirms that their main concern is not our people and the interests of our country. This is an expression of their narrow party interests. ”

Apparently, the current government of Georgia finally realized that the ocean is far from friends, and the opposition is not fighting for the rights of citizens. And now a worthy rebuff has been given to both Americans and traitors."

Source - https://cont.ws/@jonbaddy/1575721

Giorgi Gakharia, Prime Minister of Georgia met Kelly Degnan, US Ambassador to Georgia upon her arrival to the new country of service.
Meeting was related to the strategic partnership and prospects of furthermore deepened relations within the scope of current cooperation between the two countries.
Head of Government of Georgia and US Ambassador spoke about priorities of the Government of Georgia, which were positively deemed by the diplomat. It was noted that close cooperation exists between the two countries in various directions. Special focus was made on the tangible results of cooperation in defense and security. Opportunities of furthermore deepened economic relations were also underlined at the meeting.
"I really enjoyed the meeting. It was a very substantive discussion. We covered a number of topics, including the security cooperation, our economic cooperation and opportunities to increase our economic ties. We had a good discussion about the importance of education, including the recent program initiative for 7 MLN USD that the USAID has recently unveiled and that should work very well and compliment to the initiative that the Government of Georgia has also unveiled" stated the US Ambassador to Georgia.
As noted by the newly arrived diplomat after a meeting, 2020 is a significant year for the USA and Georgia, as elections are scheduled in both countries.
"This is an important election year both here in Georgia and of course in the United States as well. So I am looking forward to working with the Government and people of Georgia, along with its civil society on the democratic process here, while we go through the same thing in the United States" added the US Ambassador.
Meeting was commented about by Irakli Chikovani, Foreign Affairs Adviser to the Prime Minister of Georgia, who believes it was very interesting and substantial. In his opinion, Head of Government of Georgia and US Ambassador to Georgia discussed opportunities stemming from strategic partnership and cooperation.
"First meeting was held between Giorgi Gakharia, Prime Minister of Georgia and Kelly Degnan, US Ambassador to Georgia. It was very interesting and substantial. Head of Government and the newly appointed diplomat spoke about the opportunities stemming from strategic partnership and cooperation between the two countries. Discussions were related to specific topics, priorities defined by the Government of Georgia, along with challenges currently faced by our country" noted Foreign Affairs Adviser to the Prime Minister of Georgia.
Head of Government of Georgia expressed his gratitude to the US Ambassador for the unwavering support of territorial integrity and sovereignty of Georgia demonstrated by the USA, once again stressing the irrevocable nature of European and Euro-Atlantic aspiration of the country.
Meeting held at the Government Administration today was attended by Natia Mezvrishvili, Head of Government Administration; Irakli Chikovani, Foreign Affairs

Posted by Madpunter on the 4th Feb :-

RE: Not just no money - now its no overalls
It seems that some on here are very gullible and latch on to the slightest bit of propaganda. Keep looking at the big picture and not the latest isolated news article.
Do you honestly think that a company that has prided itself on health and safety would not provide overalls or insurance.

FRR's H + S achievements :-
1) Zero harm in 2019.
2) Over 400,000 hours with zero injuries.
3) Over 5 million hours and almost 11 years with only two injuries since March 2008.
4) Our Safety performance over the past 10 years puts us in the top of 5% of energy companies in our industry.

FRR has also helped the local community with medical counseling, an agricultural project and a safe motherhood program.

FRONTERA’S MEDICAL COUNSELING PROJECT
Started in May 2017 and covered 3 regions in Georgia including Ozurgeti, Zemo Nikozi and Dedophlistskaro.

Team of medical professionals – pediatricians, cardiologists, endocrinologists, neurologists, gastroenterologists and surgeons conducted free medical screening and counseling of about 400 members of local community. The screening included cardiogram and echocardiogram, blood sugar level testing, thyroid and abdominal ultrasound, as well as physical examination. Patients were provided with practical medical advices and prescriptions instrumental to treatment of various conditions.

Frontera’s Medical Counseling Project vows to expand its scope of work throughout other regions of Georgia.

FRONTERA’S AGRICULTURE PROJECT
Read more
As part of Frontera’s commitment to the Dedoplistkaro District, Frontera commissioned Texas A&M University’s Norman Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture as well as the university’s AgriLife Research Center to undertake a project that is designed to conduct testing of Texas wheat germplasm from the Texas A&M seed bank that is best suited to the Kakheti region of Georgia.

FRONTERA SAFE MOTHERHOOD PROGRAM
Read more
In response to an expressed need from the Gudushauri Medical Center in Tbilisi, Frontera joined with the Georgian Government in an initiative to address the high infant mortality rate in rural Georgia.

https://fronteraresources.com/csr/

Posted by seisprocessor on the 3rd Feb :-

BP background info
In the absence of any news today (until we hear about the possible picketing of the Georgian Parliament allegedly scheduled for today) here's a potted summary of snippets from today's BP RNS. Just useful background info really.
So the fall in BP's profits is due to the decline in lower margin gas basins? Best they find a new one that's profitable then!

The company’s full-year profits fell by 21% in 2019 to $10bn (£7.7bn), from $12.7bn in the year before, due to weaker oil and gas prices.
The slowdown in the global oil market has dented profits across the industry. The global oil price averaged $64.36 a barrel last year, down sharply from an average of just over $71 in 2018. The price has fallen further to less than $55 a barrel this week.
Divestments and other disposals announced since the start of 2019 now total $9.4 billion, keeping BP ahead of schedule to meet its target of $10 billion proceeds by end-2020. BP expects to announce a further $5 billion of agreed disposals by mid-2021.
- Five Upstream major projects began production in 2019, and final investment decisions were taken for a further five.
Final investment decisions for five further projects, in the US Gulf of Mexico, UK North Sea, Azerbaijan and India, were taken in 2019.
On 30 November, the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) through Turkey and its connection to the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) in Greece was completed. TANAP is expected to begin transporting gas to Turkish and European markets in late 2020 (Azeri state energy company SOCAR 51%, BOTAS 30%, BP 12%, and SOCAR Turkey 7%).
Looney is expected to announce new climate targets for the company, which faces public outcry over its role in accelerating the crisis by continuing to increase its production of fossil fuels.
He will reportedly set new carbon targets for BP beyond the emissions from its own operations to include the emissions produced from using the fuels they produce, according to Reuters. The company may also sell off the oil and gas fields with the largest carbon footprints in Angola and Canada.
We expect full-year 2020 underlying production to be lower than 2019 due to declines in lower margin gas basins. We expect reported production to be lower due to the above factor and the impact of the ongoing divestment programme.

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