Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez insisted that Venezuela, the world’s fifth-largest oil exporter, is producing 3.1 million barrels of crude a day, exceeding its OPEC quota of 2.9 million barrels per day. It also provides about 14% of US oil supplies.
Private analysts have suggested that Venezuela has inflated production figures since an oil workers strike in December 2002-February 2003 that failed to oust President Hugo Chavez.
Quote:
Analysts have said that production is closer to 2.5 million barrels a day. They cite alleged lack of investment after the strike and lost expertise.
I'm pretty sure that Ramirez is lying. This is more likely a political statement, to make people believe that the venezuelan oil industry is under control.
Right now, PDVSA, the state-owned oil company, is a big black box, and the people now in management is working with political goals in mind, completely loyal to the government. Also, they are not as experienced as the people that used to manage the company.
So don't blame the OPEC; just blame the current venezuelan regime. And for the real production numbers, it's anybody's guess... _________________ Regards,
Arraitz
Joined: Aug 23, 2004 Posts: 697 Location: Frost Free in New Zealand
Posted: Sat Sep 18, 2004 9:42 pm Post subject: Chavez: Oil prices could hit $100 a barrel
Chavez: Oil prices could hit $100 a barrel 09/17/2004 18:17
The Venezuelan president said the war in Iraq could lead crude markets to go haywire. The South American country plans to wrap up an agreement to create an oil consortium in the Caribbean.
High oil prices have been a blessing for Venezuela's strained economy. After two years of political turmoil it helped Hugo Chavez rule to increase social aid and to expand its GDP up to 10% this year. As world's fifth oil producer, they have also positioned Venezuela as a key country in the region.
With the above in mind is easy to understand why Chavez is concerned on a jump in oil prices, which may lead markets to go haywire. According to him, it is not possible to rule out that the war in Iraq could push oil prices to a record $100 USD a barrel. This scenario could end with the precarious equilibrium between oil producers and big purchasers.
"This war is a powder keg,'' said Chavez, after meeting with Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. "It could take the price of a barrel to $100 USD. I hope it doesn't.'' However, Chavez declined to comment on OPEC's decision to raise output by 1 million barrels a day.
Earlier, the Venezuelan Government had confirmed it didn't plan to raise its own production, now at 2 million barrels a day. According to Chavez, world markets are "oversupplied.'' Therefore, the reason for the high oil prices is merely political, only connected to the bad decision taken by the White House to lead an invasion against Iraq.
At the same time, and taken advantage of the oil bonanza, Venezuela keeps on trying to consolidate its power in the region by making use of its strategic resources. Recently, Caracas has been mandated by several Caribbean countries to draft a multilateral agreement to fast-track the implementation of the PetroCaribe initiative.
This was one of the major decisions that emerged from the latest meeting between Venezuela and Caribbean energy ministers. PetroCaribe is the brainchild of Venezuelan President Hugo Ch?vez and is designed to reduce the effects of high oil prices on the region by offering the energy-dependent islands of the Caribbean petroleum products at significantly reduced costs.
Venezuela is discussing a similar agreement with Brazil and Argentina, and eventually Mexico, in order to grant energy equilibrium and self sufficiency in Latin America. This week, Argentina took an important step in this sense, as country"s Infrastructure Minister, Julio De Vido, went to the National Congress to speed up the creation of a new state owned oil company. Argentina had sold its oil monopoly to the Spanish Repsol in 1994.
{touch up; EE}
Skiwi - excellent post - is this a professional skill ? If not I think it could be.
I don't suppose you heard anything about what currency PetroCaribe will trade in or you'd have posted it. If ever you do, you will ?
regards, Backstop
I don't know how to take this.
Is Chavez secretly wishing oil climbs much higher, as implied in his taunting of the uS invasion of Iraq, and the lack of attempts to ramp up production in Venz.?
Or, is chavez not able to ramp up much (Venezuala has been in decline recently) and would rather play the market for the last gasp of oil super high prices post peak, but not now? (thus he would be concidred to be pretty much "telling the truth" other than his countries capacity? _________________ Eickhorn Daggers!
www.pistolanddagger.com
Russian arms sale to Chavez irks U.S. By Rowan Scarborough THE WASHINGTON TIMES 10 Feb 2005
WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration has lodged a formal protest with Russia for agreeing to provide the government of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez more than 100,000 AK-47 rifles that U.S. officials believe could be used to aid left-wing uprisings in Latin America.
Admittedly it's an article from that Moonie newspaper: link
Joined: Dec 08, 2004 Posts: 921 Location: 145'2"E 37'46"S
Posted: Thu Feb 10, 2005 4:38 pm Post subject:
And what if net-chatter, that Russia has provided SSN22 supersonic cruise missiles, so-called carrier-killers, is true?
That Venezuela is so blatent (ditching US refining assets, going hard on Columbia for FARC kidnapping, selling oil via Iran..) suggests to me they know something we don't.
kingcoal wrote:
If Chavez keeps that up, his country is the next liberation target
Care to define liberation? Do you have a death toll estimate? (order of magnitude fine).
Awwww....the Bushy-wushies are mad at the Russie-wushies for giving the Vene-wennies some gunny-wunnies! I guess the Bushy-wushies are gonna just hold their breathie-wethies till they turn bluesy-woosy...OOPS! That'd mean they'd be Democraty-watties! Never mind!
Maybe they'd use nukey-wukkies on the Vene-wennies! But that would upset the EUnnie-woonies, who they just sent Condi-wondi to make friendsy-wensies with again. So I guess the Bushy-wushies will just do the usual: act all madsie-wadsie and have their army-warmie invade and destroy another city-witty in Iraqy-wacky!
This is all so insaney-waney....
A Real Racial Democracy?
Hugo Chavez and the Politics of Race
As the war of words heats up between the Bush White House and Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, the firebrand South American leader has boldly sought to forge ties with poor communities of color in the United States. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Chavez provided relief assistance to the poverty stricken and largely African American victims of the disaster.
The head of Citgo, the U.S. subsidiary of Venezuela's state owned oil company, set up disaster relief centers in Louisiana and Texas in the wake of the hurricane and provided humanitarian to thousands of victims. Volunteers based at Citgo refineries in Lake Charles, Louisiana and Corpus Christi, Texas, provided medical care, food and water to approximately 5,000 people.
In Houston, volunteers from Citgo headquarters provided similar assistance to 40,000 victims. What is more, Venezuela has provided hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil in energy assistance to the United States. Chavez followed up his bold initiative by announcing that he would soon begin to ship heating and diesel oil at rock bottom prices to schools, nursing homes, hospitals and poor communities within the U.S. The Venezuelan president has also offered to provide free eye surgery for poor Americans suffering from certain eye conditions.
The firebrand South American leader, who proclaimed the plan during a recent visit to New York, will begin his oil program through an October pilot project in Chicago. There, the Venezuelan government will target poor Mexican Americans for assistance.
In November, Chavez intends to expand the program to the South Bronx and Boston. Chavez has even offered to ship low cost gasoline to Native American tribal communities in the United States. "There is a lot of poverty in the U.S. and I don't believe that reflects the American Way of Life. Many people die of cold in the winter. Many die of heat in the summer," Chavez recently remarked during his weekly TV show. "We could have an impact on seven to eight million persons," he added.
During his time in New York, Chavez toured the largely African American and Latino populated Bronx and was treated like a veritable rock star. Democratic Congress member Jose Serrano, who invited the Venezuelan president to the Bronx, remarked, "Chavez went to the poorest congressional district in the nation's richest city, and people on the street there just went crazy. A lot of people told me they were really mesmerized by him. He made quite an impression."
Chavez’s trip is reminiscent of similar moves by Cuban leader Fidel Castro, a figure who Chavez frankly admires. In a celebrated trip in 1960, Castro stayed at a cheap hotel in Harlem where he met with important political figures of the day such as Malcolm X. -long snip-
The Future of Hemispheric Racial Politics
Chavez’s international diplomacy and his warm ties with prominent African Americans will surely enrage the Bush White House yet further. Just at the time when Bush's popularity is flagging over the war in Iraq and botched relief efforts at home, Chavez has emerged as the most charismatic South American leader in recent times.
For Bush, who tried and failed to dislodge Chavez in 2002, it is hardly a promising picture. Meanwhile, Chavez has inspired not only oppressed minorities within his own country but also blacks living outside Venezuela.
"Advanced by individuals such as President Chavez," Fletcher remarks, "the recognition of the on-going reality of racism, and the struggles against it by the African descendant and Indigenous populations, could have a momentous impact on the politics and future of Latin America, let alone the entire Western Hemisphere."
All times are GMT - 6 Hours Goto page 1, 2, 3 ... 24, 25, 26Next
Page 1 of 26
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
News
Discussions
Resources
Members
Forum FAQ
Search
Usergroups
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
ree rah rip ram. sunofabitch godamn. hidey didey christ almighty. rah rah crap 
