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Chavez guarantees oil for 200 years for South America
Venezuelan leader expands his energy initiative and perhaps his regional influence
By NATALIE OBIKO PEARSON
Associated Press
Associated Press
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, left, confers with his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, at a meeting Thursday in Brasilia to announce joint plans to build an oil refinery in northeast Brazil.
CARACAS, VENEZUELA - President Hugo Chavez said Thursday he wants to share his country's oil wealth with every nation in South America, in a move that aims to strengthen alliances in the region on the back of surging energy prices.
Chavez, a close ally of Cuba's Fidel Castro, said his country has enough resources to help the region for generations.
"With this mission of energy integration, Venezuela guarantees petroleum and gas for the South American continent for at least 200 years," Chavez said as he arrived for a South American summit in Brazil's capital of Brasilia.
Venezuela's "Petroamerica" initiative is a rival to the U.S.-backed Free Trade Area of the Americas. It integrates previous oil projects Petrosur, Petrocaribe and Petroandina, under which Venezuela agreed to sell fuel to other countries in the region on preferential terms.
Chavez has said the energy alliances will challenge U.S. economic domination in the region and distribute fuel directly to avoid costly intermediaries.
Venezuela and Brazil will jointly exploit oil in the Orinoco tar belt, Chavez said. Officials also announced Thursday that Brazil and Venezuela had agreed to share the cost of building a $2.5 billion refinery in northeastern Brazil to process up to 200,000 barrels a day.
Few specifics of future deals under the Petroamerica initiative have been announced, but some of its aims include stepping up refining capacity and promoting joint exploitation of oil and natural gas.
"Everyone on the continent is looking with a lot of interest," said Santiago Chavez, a trade official at Ecuador's embassy in Venezuela, after energy ministers from 12 South American countries signed a declaration Monday pledging to pursue the Petroamerica initiative.
In June, Chavez signed the Petrocaribe deal with 13 Caribbean countries to sell 190,000 barrels of fuel a day under terms that are expected to save them millions of dollars. Eleven have since signed more specific deals allowing them to pay a portion of their debt up front and finance the rest for 25 years at low interest rates.
Venezuelan leader expands his energy initiative and perhaps his regional influence
By NATALIE OBIKO PEARSON
Associated Press
Associated Press
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, left, confers with his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, at a meeting Thursday in Brasilia to announce joint plans to build an oil refinery in northeast Brazil.
CARACAS, VENEZUELA - President Hugo Chavez said Thursday he wants to share his country's oil wealth with every nation in South America, in a move that aims to strengthen alliances in the region on the back of surging energy prices.
Chavez, a close ally of Cuba's Fidel Castro, said his country has enough resources to help the region for generations.
"With this mission of energy integration, Venezuela guarantees petroleum and gas for the South American continent for at least 200 years," Chavez said as he arrived for a South American summit in Brazil's capital of Brasilia.
Venezuela's "Petroamerica" initiative is a rival to the U.S.-backed Free Trade Area of the Americas. It integrates previous oil projects Petrosur, Petrocaribe and Petroandina, under which Venezuela agreed to sell fuel to other countries in the region on preferential terms.
Chavez has said the energy alliances will challenge U.S. economic domination in the region and distribute fuel directly to avoid costly intermediaries.
Venezuela and Brazil will jointly exploit oil in the Orinoco tar belt, Chavez said. Officials also announced Thursday that Brazil and Venezuela had agreed to share the cost of building a $2.5 billion refinery in northeastern Brazil to process up to 200,000 barrels a day.
Few specifics of future deals under the Petroamerica initiative have been announced, but some of its aims include stepping up refining capacity and promoting joint exploitation of oil and natural gas.
"Everyone on the continent is looking with a lot of interest," said Santiago Chavez, a trade official at Ecuador's embassy in Venezuela, after energy ministers from 12 South American countries signed a declaration Monday pledging to pursue the Petroamerica initiative.
In June, Chavez signed the Petrocaribe deal with 13 Caribbean countries to sell 190,000 barrels of fuel a day under terms that are expected to save them millions of dollars. Eleven have since signed more specific deals allowing them to pay a portion of their debt up front and finance the rest for 25 years at low interest rates.
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