Friday, February 29, 2008

Chevron happy in Venezuela, says it's there for the 'long term'

HOUSTON (MarketWatch) -- Chevron Corp. (CVX:CVX CVX, , ) sees its oil business with Venezuela as a "long-term" relationship, a top executive of the oil giant said Thursday, adding that Chevron plans to comply with new contractual terms for its projects in the Orinoco Belt.

"We will continue to follow our contract to the government of Venezuela and PdVSA," Ali Moshiri, president for Chevron Africa and Latin America Exploration and Production, told Dow Jones Newswires. "We are in Venezuela for the long term."

Chevron was the only U.S. oil major that accepted the new contractual terms imposed last year by the government of President Hugo Chavez on international oil companies operating in the Orinoco River basin, which produces abundant but low-quality crude.

The changes gave majority ownership to Venezuela's national oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela SA, or PdVSA.
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and ConocoPhillips (COP) abandoned their projects in June after rejecting the new contractual terms. Both are now seeking compensation through international arbitration.

No comments: