Venezuela seizes 35 oil contractors under new law

[Zorro]

Source: AP

Venezuela's state oil company is seizing control of 35 oil contractors under a new law, President Hugo Chavez's government said Wednesday.

The takeovers will affect dozens of local companies that provide transport and other services to Venezuela's state oil company on western Lake Maracaibo -- including Alloys CA, Brucciani & Paltrinieri CA, and Flag Instalaciones SA. The order took effect upon its publication in the Official Gazette issued Wednesday.

Also named is SIMCO consortium, which injects water into oil fields to improve recovery.

Houston-based Wood Group, which is a 49.5 percent partner in the consortium, has said state-run Petroleos de Venezuela SA, or PDVSA, took over its operations earlier this year after the company submitted a default notice over nonpayment and other disputes. Wood Group's parent company, John Wood Group PLC, is based in Aberdeen, Scotland.

Read more: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Venezuela-seizes-35-oil-apf-15310308.html?.v=1

[Doctor Cynic]

1. Hmm...government running out of money?

[Arctic Dave]

2. I doubt it. Oil is still in historic highs area.

Most likely they are trying to bring control of the entire extraction process under government authority.

[davidinalameda]

3. and why is this a good thing

[ronnie624]

4. "Petroleos de Venezuela SA, or PDVSA,

took over its operations earlier this year after the company submitted a default notice over nonpayment and other disputes."

Why is it a bad thing?

[MrMonk]

5. Because PDVSA took the over the operations rather than make payments.

You file a default notice on someone when THEY owe YOU money. PDVSA owed, the company filed notice, and PDVSA responded by taking the over the company's operations. A real "fuck you" move.

[ronnie624]

6. Ah, I see. I misunderstood.

I thought Wood Group had filed the default notice.

My bad.

[christx30]

7. Cool

My water and electric are about to be shut off because I can't make the payments.
Can I seize control of Green Mountain Energy and Southwest water company so I can start profiting from them instead of losing my water and electricity? That would be awesome.

Geeze... why anyone would do business down there, I have no idea.
Maybe the US should seize control of Citgo. See how Chavez responds.

[EFerrari]

9. You have that a little inside out. If the US seized Citgo,

all Venezuela would have to do is stop supplying them, including the heating oil they give to all those low income American communities. We'd be seizing nothing.

The real comparison would be if China went into the Gulf and started pumping oil or into West Virginia and started lopping off mountain tops and we went in and seized those operations and repatriated our own resources. That's what Venezuela is doing. It's announced policy. Venezuela can seize the operation in order to get into a better bargaining position in arbitration which is exactly what they're doing

Oooh, big bad Chavez, taking care of his own. What a bastard!

[northernlights]

10. ding. ding. ding.

We have a winner.

Exactly. Who in this country was not crying over last year's outrageous oil prices, and the outrageous profits of the oil barons while working people were forced to choose between food and heat, or food and getting to work?

Chavez is fighting *for* working people, not against them.

And when Citgo announced that it was going to stop donating oil to Joe Kennedy's heating oil for the poor program, who was it that announced that Venezuela absolutely would continue?

Chavez. Kennedy went to every single major oil company and they *all* refused to donate oil even while posting record profits. Only Chavez gave oil to America's poor to keep them from freezing.

[christx30]

11. Venezeula

had a contract with the oil companies for them to conduct operating services to the country, and Venezuela did not keep up their end of the deal.
If we allowed China to come into West Virginia to start lopping off mountain tops, we would first have a contract with them. They would not simply come in and start doing it on a whim. We would pay them for the work they do, and we would not one day send soldiers in and steal all of the equipment that they brought in to do the work that we hired them to do, just because they wanted to be paid for their work. It's as simple as that.

I refer you back to my comparison with the electric and water utilities. Rather than pay them for the service that they have provided me like I should, I'll just walk in and take over.

[Joe Chi Minh]

12. There is such a thing as a "leonine contract", which mean one party to

the contract carries a big stick. Kind of lop-sided.

[sofa king]

13. Were those contracts written when V. was a corrupt plutocracy?

Because if they were, the Venezuelan people were never consulted and were never intended to share in the deal over their oil.

Now they most certainly are going to be in on the next deal.

[EFerrari]

17. No, that's wrong. They're in or will go into arbitration.

And your utilities comparision doesn't work because it isn't your electricity or water.

[Titonwan]

15. Thank you.

Seems like we have some DINO's here. To hell with privately owned oil companies. It's too valuable to be left in the hands of the greedy and lecherous.

[WriteDown]

18. Its kind of like when the US seized those houses in

Connecticut to build condos and malls to increase tax revenue. Or when the govt seized that land in Pennsylvania for that 911 memorial. That was AWESOME! Those are the peoples resources and we're taking them back. :eyes:

[EFerrari]

19. No, it's kind of like the opposite of that because those projects

benefited private companies more than they created tax revenue.

[WriteDown]

20. No...

Read Kelo. You're talking about the aftermath, but they were MEANT to increase tax revenue. Unintended consequences and all that.

[EFerrari]

21. Baloney. Those deals are always made because the politician

is in somebody's pocket or has a direct interest in the repurposing.

[WriteDown]

23. Care to provide some evidence of that...

Glad Hugito doesn't have any direct interests in anything. How's his mom living these days again?

[Vidar]

8. Bravo Chavez. He punishes the looters; we give them cabinet positions.

[Titonwan]

16. Ha Ha!

How so very true.

[Titonwan]

14. GOOD

We should be so brave as to take control of such a vital interest out of the hands of the industrial pimps.
We don't let private companies run our Aircraft Carriers. Why the oil?

[AlphaCentauri]

22. Cry me a river