Attacks on Energy Infrastructure Set Doubts on Peru's Future

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Researched by Amir Richani for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--A cut in a Peruvian oil pipeline offers insights into the country's energy challenges.

On October 18, Petroperu (Lima, Peru), the national oil company, stated that individuals had made a cut in the first section of the Oleoducto Norperuano (ONP), Peru's main oil pipeline, which transports oil from the northern oil fields to the Bayovar terminal in the Pacific Ocean. As a result of constant attacks, the ONP has been offline for several months, impacting the nation's oil production.

The latest attack led to an oil spill that impacted local rivers. As part of the official pipeline inspection, authorities found that another five cuts had been made on the pipeline, though none of them led to oil spills.

The ONP comprises three connections, with Section One running for 306 kilometres (km) (190 miles) with a capacity of 70,000 barrels of oil per day (BBL/d). The second and main section of the pipeline has a length of 548 km (340 miles) and a capacity to transport 200,000 BBL/d. Finally, the Ramal Norte is the third portion of the pipeline, extending for 256 km (159 miles) with a capacity of 105,000 BBL/d.

This pipeline is critical for transporting northern Peruvian oil, where some of the country's largest oil fields are located. In September, the South American country produced some 39,000 BBL/d, with the Amazonian oil fields representing about 35% of the output. In the first nine months of the year, Peru has been averaging an oil output of 42,000 BBL/d.

Nevertheless, these numbers do not offer a complete insight into the importance of the northern field for Peru, given that blocks 192 and 8, located in the north, have been offline for more than a year. Before going out of service in early 2020, these fields produced a combined volume between 10,000 BBL/d and 17,000 BBL/d, with regular fluctuations in their output.

Block 192 was recently licensed to Petroperu following the end of the contract with Canadian oil company Frontera (Calgary). Yet, this oil block was constantly shut down by indigenous groups protesting for several reasons, including the presence of oil spills in the area. The unrest hampered the field's oil production, which remains offline according to the latest data shown by the ministry of energy and mines.

Vandalism over Peru's energy infrastructure is not rare, as groups have continuously attacked pipelines and energy assets. As a result, the ONP has been completely shut down due to sabotages along the pipeline. Since December 2021, the ONP has received at least 11 confirmed attacks with more than 50 cuts along the pipeline, according to Petroperu's statement.

Stability in Peru's northern regions and across its energy assets is a significant obstacle to the scalability and development of the nation's energy sector. Without providing security for these assets and settling issues with local communities, it will be tough to maintain constant oil production in the nation's northern fields.

These incidents could also discourage companies from investing in the nation's energy resources due to security risks.

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