Petroamazonas, the exploration and production subsidiary of Ecuador’s state-run oil company, is preparing to become the first oil-sector business in South America to sell greenhouse-gas emission-reduction certificates. The certified emissions reductions, or CERs, will be based on the company’s use of natural gas that until now has been released or flared in its oilfield operations. Under a three-phase project, Petroamazonas is using progressively more of this gas to generate electricity for its oil-production work. In the process, the company is phasing out dirtier-burning, less efficient diesel-powered generators, thereby reducing its greenhouse-gas emissions. The new plant, which will use gas as its primary fuel but will be capable of burning oil if needed as a backup, has... [Log in to read more]