Good morning, this is the Oil Patch. We're the Brita filter of oil and gas - we remove all the impurities and contaminants, leaving you only with the highest quality minerals and nutrients.

Here's what the Oilman has for you today:

• Oil Traders Charged with Breakfast-Related Bribery Scheme

• Blackouts Return to Cuba Ahead of Hot Summer

• Silicon Valley and Its Insatiable Demand for Energy

• Tweet of the Day

Oil Traders Charged with Breakfast-Related Bribery Scheme

It seems that some oil traders will do just about anything for breakfast - even bribe officials to win business from Petrobras, Brazil's state-owned oil company.

Glenn Oztemel, a Connecticut trader, and Eduardo Innecco, a Brazilian-Italian broker, have been accused of using coded language like "breakfast" to refer to bribes and bribe amounts.

They allegedly used encrypted messaging apps and personal email accounts to cover their tracks, but the Department of Justice caught on.

Operation Car Wash

Between 2010 and 2018, Oztemel and Innecco paid bribes to Brazilian officials to secure contracts and learn confidential information about Petrobras' fuel oil business.

Oztemel denies the charges, while Innecco is on the run.

The charges come as part of a larger investigation into bribery involving Petrobras, called Operation Car Wash.

The scheme allegedly involved tipping off Freepoint Commodities, where Oztemel worked, about rival bids in Petrobras fuel auctions.

Corruption is like burnt toast

It ruins everything. It undermines trust in the oil and gas industry and erodes public confidence in corporate and government institutions.

The charges against Oztemel and Innecco show that bribery schemes are not just cheesy spy movie plots, but a real and serious problem.

And if you're going to have breakfast, do it for the right reasons - like the deliciousness of bacon and eggs, not as a cover for bribery.

Let's hope that the charges against Oztemel and Innecco serve as a wake-up call for the oil and gas industry to clean up its act.

And if you're thinking of using breakfast-related code words to cover up shady dealings, just remember - the Department of Justice is always listening.

Blackouts Return to Cuba Ahead of Hot Summer

The Cuban summer is a time of sultry heat and stifling humidity. But this year, things will be even hotter - and not in a good way.

The Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, announced that Cuba will have to implement rolling blackouts until May while they try to upgrade their old oil-fired power plants.

The blackouts will last an average of three hours, making it a challenge for residents and businesses to deal with the scorching heat.

Cuba's power grid has been a mess for some time now

With power outages as common as flies on a cow. But things got worse in September 2022 when Hurricane Ian came through and knocked out the entire grid, leaving the entire country in the dark.

It was a disaster, and the people were not happy.

So, the government has been trying to fix things up and keep the lights on. However, progress has been slow due to the ongoing shortages of fuel, parts, and capital investment.

With summer on the horizon, the government has had no choice but to turn off the power to save it.

A real pain in the neck

Three hours may not sound like much, but it can be an eternity when you're sitting in the sweltering heat.

This will be particularly tough for folks who need cool temperatures for medical reasons or businesses that rely on electricity to keep their operations humming.

Furthermore, the blackouts have been a trigger for political unrest in the past, and with everything else that's going on in the country, it's not hard to imagine things boiling over again.

The Oilman sees this as a reminder to western countries to keep focused on affordable, reliable energy sources for today – and for the future.

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Silicon Valley and Its Insatiable Demand for Energy

Silicon Valley has been leading the charge for a cleaner and greener future with their push for clean energy and sustainable technologies.

However, despite their good intentions, it seems like the tech industry's carbon footprint is still expanding faster than an Instagram influencer's ego.

That Hideous Strength

CS Lewis, in his book "That Hideous Strength," painted a vivid picture of a dystopian future where a sinister organization known as "The N.I.C.E." seeks to impose their vision of progress on the world.

In imagining the quest for net zero, one can't help but see a similar danger lurking.

What is the goal of net zero, after all, but the elimination of all carbon emissions carbon-based life?

The very building blocks of our civilization will be targeted, from the way we generate electricity to the way we heat our homes and fuel our vehicles. It's easy to imagine a future where every aspect of our lives is regulated, monitored, and controlled in the name of this grand goal.

Like the technocrats of "The N.I.C.E.," those who push for net zero may justify their actions as necessary for the greater good.

But at what cost?

What will be the price of this utopian vision, and who will pay it?

It's not hard to imagine a future where personal freedom is sacrificed on the altar of net zero, where individual choices are restricted and monitored, and where the pursuit of progress becomes a euphemism for oppression.

Perhaps we should heed the warning of CS Lewis and be wary of those who seek to impose their vision on the world, even in the name of a noble cause.

Net zero may seem like a worthy goal, but we must not forget that the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

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