The Flames of Black Gold

[Kertosono]

Kertosono Financial House Economic Report for 1928-1929 KE Fiscal Year
23 Bena 1929 KE
4 January 2023 AD

Overview

NGAWI - As the world enters a new calendar year, Kertosono also enters a new fiscal year. Kertosono would not have its own new year until around two more months, according to the Kertic calendar. The latest Kertic fiscal year began on the 1st of Bena 1928 KE, and ended on the 31st of Kasrepen 1929 KE, or between the 14th of December 2021 until the 13th of December 2022. The Central Bureau of Statistics and Data has released its preliminary reports on the general overview of the Kertic economy thus far, and was shown to have reached a figure of ℳ1.87 trillion, or around A$275 billion. Overall, the Kertic economy continued its sustained yet rather mediocre growth rate of 3% YOY, with significant contributions coming from increased spending and monetary circulation surrounding the new monarch's coronation and installation. As Kertosono continues to import more than it exports, especially in tertiary consumer goods such as automobiles, printers, and other electronics, it is trade deficit by around A$200 million. Major exports of Kertosono in 1928-1929 KE were clothing, semi-finished goods, semiconductors, tobacco, mechanical goods, agricultural products, and other canned products. At the same time, Kertosono mostly imported automobiles, other ready-made electronics, and oil. 

Major developments in semiconductor manufacture and research were also recorded last year. The state-owned enterprise Pracimantoro declared record profits, attributing to increased domestic demand and increasing foreign investments in the company. Other sectors have remained fairly consistent in performance, yet some, especially the mining and lumber industries, have seen a decline in revenue and sales. Although so, most of the growth could be attributed to micro to medium scale enterprises run buy ordinary citizens, selling and offering basic goods and services such as shoe-cleaning, frozen food, or a home catering service. As more money circulates within a community, the community as a whole get richer. 

While the full report would not be available until sometime next week, this post shall serve as a general overview and summary.

Challenges

Government efforts to diversify and enrich the Kertic economy with more variety and value has remained fairly stagnant, as shown by Kertosono’s main exports and industry. A lack of both internal and international investment and innovation within the country has held several key industries back, and has slowly led Kertosono deeper into the middle-income trap. The middle-income trap is one of the biggest issues facing the Kertic economy today since it graduated from a severely underdeveloped economy in the 1970s. In short, the country has lots to offer the wider market. But due to various constraints, some mentioned above, it would no longer be able to leap into a highly-developed economy within a generation or two, remaining within the middle-income band.

Stringent labor laws as well as an unfavorable business environment continue to contribute to Kertosono’s fairly stagnant economy over the past decade or so. As economic incentives which propelled Kertosono into middle-income status start to wane, the Kertic government has a much harder time attracting domestic and international capital owners. In order for the country to escape the trap, Kertosono needs to attract more capital within its borders to bolster its own economic engine, diversifying and adding more value in the processes which run the system.

Strong propositions to address such issues have already been voiced by several groups, such as relaxing some problematic laws, synchronization of labor laws nationwide, huge economic incentives and tax breaks for investors, and massive boosts in funding and attention from the government, though have gotten nowhere in parliament due to a lack of interest, feasibility, or funding. Solving these issues could eventually boost the Kertic economy, and increase the living standards of all its citizens.

Opportunities

With all the challenges and issues facing the Kertic economy, there are still many options and opportunities for Kertosono to rebound and address all the said problems plaguing the economy. For one, the coronation of a young monarch onto the Sailendran throne could serve as a symbol of rejuvenation of all aspects of Kertic life, including its economy. The hopeful young monarch could help attract investment and capital into his country, thus bringing development and progress within the fairly stagnant system. Legislation-wise, the newly elected parliament of 1929 KE could start to sort out the unsynchronized and unfavorable pieces of legislation to increase economic output and activity.

Several key industries which have been severely underutilized or underestimated by the Kertic government should also be prioritized and looked into much more closely. The agricultural sector of Kertosono could be the key to success for Kertosono, a course rarely taken by other nations and economies, as Kertosono has started to fall behind in its manufacturing and service sectors. Without much government oversight and funding, Kertosono’s farms and fields are already producing an almost equal amount of produce when compared to more developed economies. Kertosono’s manufacture and service industries could work the other way around and exist to support the burgeoning agricultural sector, serving as a means to increase and amplify the value first brought by the agricultural sector.

Kertosono still mainly imports its oil and fuel from foreign sources, such as Fulgistan. Between 1919-1929 KE, it was shown that nearly 60% of all fuels consumed in Kertosono were imports, even enormous amounts of oil have been discovered off the coast of Ngawi in eastern Kertosono, amounting to nearly 25 billion barrels of oil, an already respectable figure. Further explorations are currently being undertaken to fully map and process the true amount of oil reserves the country has, though some estimates put it anywhere between 50 and 150 billion barrels of oil. If done properly, Kertosono could transform from a net oil importer to exporter in a matter of years, and could also balloon the national budget for a larger sum in domestic spending, especially incentivizing internal growth and investment.

[Kertosono]

Ministry of Energy and Mining Announces Licensing Scheme for "Virgin Oil Fields"

1 Bena 1930 KE

Pictured Above: Minister Bambang Atmoharyono delivering the announcement on behalf of the prime minister

Ngawi, Minister Bambang Atmoharyono has announced and delineated the Kertic government's plans for the vast oil fields discovered by the eastern Kertic coasts recently. The announcement came after a year-long silence from the both the government and parliament, leaving both domestic and international players up in the air. In a press conference also attended by international journalists stationed in the country, Minister Bambang Atmoharyono gave a general overview on how Kertosono would proceed with the findings, and what citizens and corporations could expect over the next five to ten years. A licensing and profit-sharing scheme would be endorsed by the Kertic government for international oil companies and corporations to come and drill.

Out of the 25 billion barrels currently proven to be within the Kertic EEZ, around 12 billion barrels worth of oil would be licensed and operated by foreign companies and consortiums, while the rest would be reserved for the newly found "Kertosono Oil" corporation to exploit within the next 10-20 years. The exploration of new oil reserves has been put on hold until Kertosono Oil has become more matured and self-running, meaning that the current oil landscape of Kertosono is set for at least the next 10 years. The government intends to utilize some of the money earned from the oil profits to subsidize Kertosono Oil in addition to increased forecasts in national expenditures for the 1932KE budget.

While not stated in the press release, the government is set to employ a flat 60/40 profit sharing agreement with all parties. This is unlike other government sharing schemes where the profit sharing terms are usually dictated by the amount of oil production per day. The rate could be classified as generous, considering other agreements have that rate as high as 90/10.

As a closing statement, the minister has urged all parties to "follow the news closely" as the opening of Kertosono's oil fields is only "the beginning" of a series of major economic decisions undertaken in Kertosono over the rest of PM Sulistyono Raharjo's term.

Below are the oil fields licensable listed in the official report:

• Gemintang I Field: ~2 billion barrels of oil
• Gemintang II Field: ~1.5 billion barrels of oil
• Gemintang III Field: ~1.5 billion barrels of ooil
• Prakasa Field: ~3 billion barrels of oil
• Satria I Field: ~2.5 billion barrels of oil
• Satria II Field: ~1.5 billion barrels of oil

 

[====META====]
Please reply here if you're interested

Edited December 14, 2023 by Kertosono (see edit history)

[Hisera]

HaLea Energy Enterprise expresses interest in Kertic Oil Fields

In a recent conference following the recent announcement from @Kertosono regarding the opening of Kertic Oil Fields, HLEE has publicly expressed strong interest in investments into oil extraction in the oil-rich Alharun nation. In a recent statement from Mark Flirn, Head of HLEE Foreign Operations Team, it was announced that HLEE would, “pursue a change in company policy regarding Kertosono, in order to reflect the adapting, changing situation.” During an interview with TVH, Flirn commented that, “The leadership of HLEE feels confidence in Kertic authorities and congratulates the government in this vital step forward for the Kertic economy and the Alharun oil sector,” In an announcement from the company's leadership earlier today, HLEE has already stated an interest in the Prakasa Field and Gemintang I Field, declaring that it would wish to enter into negotiations with the Kertic government regarding the acquisition of these Fields as soon as possible.

This new aggressive international expansion policy from HLEE, seen also recently in its bid on Solarios Electricity Company earlier this month, comes at a time when HLEE is starting to face challenges in its home market of Hisera from new upstart energy companies from Parlahaven (such as Light Industries and WaterWheel), potentially signifying a HLEE effort to expand beyond Hisera and secure a strong international presence. Whatever the case is, HLEE's international efforts have certainly peaked the interest of Hiseran economists, businesses, and governments alike.

[Ionio]

IOI headquarters in Taranto

In a surprise announcement IOI or Ionio Idrocarburi expressed interest in participating in the opening of Kertic oil fields. This move was indicated in the desire to diversify fossil fuel supply. This choice was moved because of the war that affected Ionian and the ongoing war that Anglia created in the wurld.  Also in the statement, the company expressed interest in the Prakasa Field and Satria I Field.  This choice to be interested in the most productive deposits indicates an economic will to make Ionio as an East Aurelia hub for glubal trade.

 

Edited December 17, 2023 by Ionio (see edit history)

[Poja]

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Friday, 15 December 2023 | 10:15 hrs [UTC-3]
Cheranrus, Kirovograd | Chernarus Petroleum Corporate Headquarters

Pytor swiveled around in his chair and looked out of the floor-to-ceiling window of his office.  Kirovograd was a snowy mess on this Friday morning, a storm having settled over central Chernarus shortly after midnight, dropping just enough snow to make the morning commute hellacious but not nearly enough to provide a good enough excuse to work from home, not that this was really an option on this day.  Of all of the days of the year, the single worst days for a snowstorm was the Friday before Christmas and January 2, the former because the country virtually shut down for the last two weeks of the year and the latter because it wasn't considered acceptable to be on vacation once the new year started.  Pojački traditions had, in some ways, failed to keep up with the times and one of those was the importance of the Friday before Christmas.

          Throughout the working wurld of Poja, the Friday before Christmas was seen as a festive day.  Yearly reviews were given, in-office parties were held, there was no expectation to work, and the cheerful atmosphere gave way to a "job well done for the year" attitude that allowed Pojački workers a day of low expectation as a reward for a year's hard work.  Most people would take vacations the last two weeks of the year, taking advantage of favorable time off policies and while companies and the government would still function the last two weeks of the year, they'd do so with "essential personnel" and throughout the white-collar wurld of Poja, those essential personnel largely did it from their home offices.  Some might travel into the office to escape a distracting home environment but these were few and far between and it was not the expectation.  Of course, come January 2, the festivities and the relaxation was over and attendance was expected to be no less than 100% as a sign of the workers' employment commitment.

          But January 2 was two weeks away and today, while everyone at Chernarus Petroleum celebrated the end of the year, Pytor stared at his calendar with disbelief.  He'd intended to come in, do his subordinate reviews, grab a bite of the catered lunch, and be home by 14:00 the latest.  He'd be lucky to leave before 18:00 on this day all thanks to the timing of the Kertic Ministry of Energy and Mining's announcement for licensing.  Not unlike how government employees were feeling regarding the Orinese overthrow of the Velaherian government, Pytor was less than pleased with the timing.  He knew little about the country, despite it having a long and warm history of friendly relations with Poja and his first observation was the announcement's date.  "What is 'Kasrepen'?  1930?  'KE'?"  None of these made sense to the man who was anything but dumb; after all, he was the vice president of business development for a reason.  A quick search online led him to an online date converter that been designed, ironically enough, by a Pojački citizen who found it difficult to translate between the Kertic and the Gregorian calendars.  "Why do they have to use a different calendar?"  He said aloud as he translated the date to realize that the announcement was roughly a day old, give or take a few hours for the time zone shift and when the official announcement was published.  When Pytor saw that Kertosono had a five-day instead of a seven-day week he wondered why he was even going to bother.  "What psychopath develops a calendar with a five-day week?"  He shook his head and didn't even bother trying to wrap his mind around how that functioned.

          Still, as vice president of business development, Pytor Fyodorov, he was obligated to put together a proposal for the board of Chernarus Petroleum.  If he ignored it, he would certainly lose his job and find it very difficult finding a new job with his future employers knowing how he neglected his fiduciary duties because of a calendar, even if - in his mind - the calendar alone was reason enough to walk away.  But like all workers, Pytor was motivated by his paycheck as much as anything else.  If Chernarus Petroleum won a contract, Pytor would be entitled to a cut of it as a bonus and it would make him a living legend within the company's history.  The revenue could exceed what Chernarus Petroleum made domestically, even being the largest oil and gas energy company in Poja.

          "Fine day for this," Pytor commented to himself aloud as he began to work up a quick presentation.  He'd certainly find himself working throughout the next week and the week thereafter so that on their return to the office, he could corral the big wigs into a meeting and put forth the proposal.  He didn't have much of a choice otherwise and as he was engrossed in it, he found the day rapidly slipping by him.  He ignored lunch and had to pull himself away to do the year-end reviews, rushing through them so that he could get back to the proposal presentation.  He'd have the first draft done by the following Thursday and then tweak it over and over and over again the week of Christmas until finally, when 2 January came, he was ready.

• • • • ‡ ‡ • • • •

The Office of the Minister of Trade
Rugi
4 January 2024
22 Kasrepen 1930 KE

Prime Minister Sulistyono Raharjo
Minister Bambang Atmoharyono
Empire of Kertosono

Dear Minister Bambang Atmoharyono of the Ministry of Energy and Mining of the Empire of Kertosono:

I am reaching out on behalf of the people and the government of the Konfederacija Poja.  The foremost role of the Ministry of Trade is to act as a facilitator between the governments of foreign nations and both the Pojački government and its private-held business entities.  I, as the Minister of Trade, am the primarily representative of the Konfederacija Poja in all matters of international trade and business and it is my humble honor to represent both the people of Poja and the Pojački government in writing to you today.

Chernarus Petroleum, Poja's oldest and largest oil and gas company has received your announcement regarding oil field licensing and wishes to convey its desire to enter into a partnership with your government for exclusive rights to the Gemintang II Field.  

Chernarus Petroleum was founded in 1964 after oil was discovered off the Chernarussian coast.  As inland oil was discovered, Chernarus Petroleum was poised to be the first company to drill for this oil.  Then a government-held company, Chernarus Petroleum was turned into a public company in 1976.  It has remained public since and has six decades of oil and gas exploitation under its belt both offshore and onshore.  Their experience and commitment to quality and safety would suit the Empire of Kertosono highly.  As a public company, they have no secrets to hide and their safety record remains unblemished for twenty-nine years straight. 

Through government oversight through the Ministry of Trade, Chernarus Petroleum can help the people of Kertosono in the exploitation of the Gemintang II Field while also providing future training and support to Kertic companies.  Chernarus Petroleum wishes to become a longstanding partner with the Empire of Kertosono and it is our hope that a long history of warm Kertic-Pojački relations will help facilitate the process. 

We look forward to your response and trust that the people of Kertosono will be in the best of hands regardless of how you choose.

Sincerely,
Honorable, Dubravko Stojaković, the Minister of Trade of the Konfederacija Poja, on behalf of the people of the Konfederacija Poja

 

Edited January 8 by Poja (see edit history)

[Tagmatium Rules]

To: His Excellency, Bambang Atmoharyono of the Ministry of Energy and Mining of the Empire of Kertosono

From: the Holy Imperial Government of the Greater Holy Empire of the Aromans

 

Your excellency,

I am contacting you on behalf of my government and my nation's state-owned energy company, Aroman Petroleum. Your excellency may well have heard that Aromania is aiming to become one of Eurth's leading green energy supplied nations. This is still the case but it is also recognised that there will be the need for fossil fuels for quite some time. This will also be the case for most nations on Eurth, and not just Aromania.

It is therefore recognised by my government that the opportunity presented by the opening up of your nation's fossil fuel reserves is not something that could be passed up. It is hoped that this investment will strengthen the economies of both of our nations, as well as providing both the funds and the incentive to move away from a purely fossil fuel-based energy sector. If your excellency or your government wish to discuss that as an aspect of the energy sector, then Aromania would be keen to listen.

However, that is not what this current discussion is about. Your nation is opening up itself to the potential for a bright future, one that will hopefully benefit everyone concerned, especially the people of your great nation. It has seemed that in recent years, Europan nations have gained a reputation for exploiting all those that they do business with. The Greater Holy Empire is keen to dispel that idea and show that at least one Europan nation is intent on the idea of equitable relationships between the nations of Eurth.

To this end, my nation would be interested in gaining the sole rights to utilise either the Gemintang III field or the Satria II field, although my government may not be interested in a bidding war if one breaks out. The field would then be developed by Aroman Petroleum, in line with the rules and regulations set out by your government. My nation would also be interested in setting aside a portion of Aromania's profits – in the region of 10%, although that can be up to discussion – in order to aid in the development of the renewable energy sector within Kertosono. The renewable energy sector is undoubtedly the future of Eurth, even as we all know that fossil fuels cannot be discarded easily at the moment.

I pray to God that this agreement is satisfactory to your government.

Takitos Khalkeos,

Grand Minister

of the

Ministry of Trade

of the

Greater Holy Empire of the Aromans

[Kertosono]

[INTERNATIONAL VERSION]

Ministry of Energy and Mining of Kertosono
Department of Oil Resources and Extraction
Pon, 13 Bena 1930 KE
Friday, 26 January 2024 AD

To: All concerned parties:

• HaLea Energy Enterprise
• Ionio Idrocarburi
• Chernarus Petroleum
• Aroman Petroleum

It is with great pleasure for the ministry to welcome all interested parties into the new sector of Kertic oil and to Kertosono as a nation. Over the course of the past few months, the ministry has received numerous queries from various sources, demonstrating the high levels of enthusiasm in countries all over the wurld. This is indeed what we have anticipated when we made our first announcements a couple of months ago, as energy security becomes much more volatile with every coming year. Kertosono has always welcomed friendly and like-minded nations to cooperate, and is always committed to help maintain this level of security in order to ensure sustained economic and social growth throughout the wurld.

We have also received formal letters of intent and interest, and have been taken good note of. We understand that some parties have expressed interest in a specific field that has been previously allocated for foreign investment. Therefore, it is to the best of all our interests that a general conference will be held to sort out all overlaps, questions, and other issues that might arise. Therefore, HM government, through the Ministry of Energy and Mining of Kertosono, formally invites all concerned parties to send a delegation and negotiate all long-term stipulations and contracts before anything is finalized. The dates and locations of these conferences will be notified directly to all concerned parties.

This is indeed a stepping stone to far greater achievements. Kertosono itself is aiming to become a carbon-neutral and even carbon-sink nation by 1950KE / 2044AD with current massive investments in public transit, green energy, and circular economies. Kertosono is always open to foreign and friendly nations wishing to assist in its transition to a greener and climate-friendly nation, and has always abode with other nations in the fight against climate change.

We thank you for your attention, and await your arrival in Ngawi.

Edited January 27 by Orioni
spelling: changed “recieved” to “received” (see edit history)