Sichuan Honghua International Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of drilling rig manufacturer Honghua Group Ltd. (HH), acquired three oil and gas engineering turnkey service agreements Thursday with PDVSA PETROLEO, S.A. The three agreements total approximately US$340 million. HH will service PDVSA in Lake Maracaibo area of Venezuela, including a progressive cavity pump upgrade project. Read More »

ET Solar has solar energy projects in different stages for a total of 187 megawatts (MW) in all of Latin America and the Caribbean of which 23 MW will be completed in November. The construction stage for the remainder, which is a total of 164 MW, is scheduled to begin in 2016. Of the total projects, 125 MW are in different stages of development in Chile while 62 MW will be in Brazil. Read More »

Mitsui & Co. and Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. signed a Share Purchase Agreement Monday, where Mitsui will acquire 49 percent of Gaspetro shares through Mitsui Gas e Energia do Brasil Ltda under an estimated purchase price of approximately $486,936,446. The gas distribution business in Brazil is composed of regional monopolies that are based on the concessions granted by the government. Read More »

Real Scientific Hemp Oil was recently approved for import by the Brazilian government. Due to two girls from the United States and Brazil with CDKL4 epilepsy, Brazil decided to change its international cannabis regulations, after a federal judge decided it was “inhumane” to keep the oil from one of the girls. The all-natural, hemp-based cannabidiol oil is now being imported by Brazil. Read More »

U.S.-based digital remittance company Remitly expanded its mobile money transfer service into Mexico. The United States to Mexico is the largest international money corridor in the world, with more than $24 billion transferred annually. Remitly's network includes most major banks and more than 11,000 locations in Mexico. This expansion allows customers to send money at cheaper rates. Read More »

G6 Hospitality will open its Estudio 6 property in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico, in 2016. The hotel will be located in the heart of Puerto Vallarta, with rooms ranging from economy to suites stacked with amenities, such as HDTVs, free Wi-Fi and kitchenettes. G6 Hospitality was ranked one of the Top 10 Hotel Companies by Hotel Management Survey in September 2015. Read More »

Diltex will use the Omni-Channel platform for its 225 Illusion and Fiorentina stores in six countries across Latin America. The platform, which includes Point of Sale, Clienteling, Order Management and Store Inventory and Fulfillment is expected to enhance the company's business transactions, according to Oscar Valero, Manhattan's senior director for Latin America. Read More »

Beverage and food packager Ball Corporation signed an agreement Tuesday to purchase the remaining interest in a joint venture in Brazil Tuesday. Ball acquired a 39.9 percent minority interest in the Latapack-Ball beverage can business in exchange for 6 million Ball common shares. This acquisition follows years of growth as local customers continue to make the shift to metal cans. Read More »

Ruiz-Jimenez was the executive vice president and general manager at a Hispanic-oriented media group in the United States and was the partner and executive vice president of a digital media company that conducted business in both Latin America and the United States. Ruiz-Jimenez earned his Bachelor’s from Villanova University and his Master's from Stanford University. Read More »

Cyber arms manufacturer Global Digital Solutions will purchase the Rontan Group of Brazil. The average daily trading volume of Global Digital Solutions shares is 36 million, but with the news of the acquisition, their trading shares increased to 41 million shares for the day. Global Digital Solutions is trying to position itself as a leader in security and technology solutions. Read More »

Chemical plant ICL Brazil will be the first facility to use the Experion Orion Console by Honeywell Process Solutions (HPS). The state-of-the-art Experion Orion Console provides a single visual workplace that is designed to reduce operator fatigue and increase plant production. The console is a large, ultra-high definition display with touch-screen capabilities. Read More »

Brazilian O2O Association was recently founded by leading technology companies and investment funds in Brazil. Brazilian O2O is the first online-to-offline association in Latin America. The key objectives of the Brazilian O2O is to encourage growth in the Brazilian O2O market and provide support to new startups. Brazil should see an emergence of O2O services, says Brazilian O2O. Read More »

Iberia has increased its passenger seats offerings in Latin America by 10 percent due to new destinations and the expansion of three existing markets. Iberia has also expanded 40 percent of the seats offered in Peru and Chile. The company has 250 weekly flights between both continents. In addition, it offers connections with 80 other destinations in Latin America. Read More »

Libra Oil & Gas BV awarded Technip a substantial contract Tuesday as part of a consortium that is headed by Petrobras Netherland BV and its partners. The contract includes supplying flexible pipes for the Libra Extended Well Test field, which is located in the Santos Basin pre-salt area in Brazil. Technip will supply pipes to the Libra Extended Well Test field. Read More »

Solar software provider Folsom Labs and solar electricity provider Envolta launched the Envolta installer portal, which will feature HelioScope software intended for use in sales, design and engineering of photovoltaic systems, Wednesday. Envolta and their installation partners use the HelioScope software platform to design and sell residential and commercial solar arrays in Mexico. Read More »

While Central America and Mexico lead in the use of geothermal energy in Latin America, countries along the Pacific coast of South America have great potential to tap in to this renewable energy source, Abu Dhabi Ruben Contreras, regional program officer for Latin America and the Caribbean at the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), told Latin Business Daily. Read More »

Papa John’s recently opened their first Papa John’s franchise in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. The store opening in Bolivia is just part of Papa John’s continued expansion into the Latin American market. Consumers have rated Papa John’s pizza No. 1 in customer satisfaction 14 times in the last 16 years. Papa John's International is currently looking for potential franchisee owners. Read More »

For U.S. companies, Brazil can be one of the most complex countries in the world to do business with because of all of the requirements that are enforced, Larry Harding, the head of corporate development activities of Radius, told Latin Business Daily in an interview. Radius provides help to companies expanding into any country in the world by leading them through legal matters. Read More »

Chilean artisanal breweries have been in the country´s beer market long enough to have achieved significant brand recognition and become a key alternative to industrial beer products, with at least one artisanal brewery becoming a tourist destination. Part of what makes the artisanal brewery business difficult are the efforts by the industrial beer brands to capture markets. Read More »

Anchovy, a species key to Peruvian fisheries as well as to the South Pacific ecosystem, could once again face dangers unless it receives adequate protection, Carmen Heck, policy director at the Peruvian branch of international organization Oceana, told Latin Business Daily. “It is the main fishing resource extracted in Peru and is basic for the food chain," Heck said by telephone. Read More »