Chevron said on Tuesday two of its executives were arrested in Venezuela, a rare move likely to spook foreign energy firms still operating in the OPEC nation stricken by hyperinflation, shortages and crime. […]
I think the word is “kidnapped”.
The arrests highlight risks for foreign firms in Venezuela. Some insiders say a fracturing ruling elite is using the purge to wage turf wars or settle scores.
“Oil industry companies would do well to be cautious and stop assuming that good relations with PDVSA can last forever due to a common interest in pumping oil,” said Raul Gallegos, associate director with the consultancy Control Risks.
They should be “cautious”? Why on earth are they still there?
How can this be? Venezuela is a modern socialist state. There is no elite – only equal working class socialists, protected lovingly by the government…
The picture at the link is from Calgary. Some here warn that Canada is going the route of Venezuela. Get out of Calgary while you still can?
If nothing else the Liebels have a level of pragmatism. As their unpopularity escalates from their absolute bungling of the TransMountain file I suspect a dramatic resolution which will get the pipeline built.
Canada’s investment rep is in the toilet which scares Bay St.’s quasi progressive support. 2/3’s of Canadians sit on the razors edge of fiscal disaster as interest rates edge higher. Turdeau faces his own day of reckoning just as Harper did as the masses realize their goose is cooked. We are closer to Venezuela than most want to admit.
“Why on earth are they still there?”
Because Venezuela, like several South American dysfunctional countries, will not allow you to take your money out of the country. So If Chevron has $1B in assets in the country they can keep working there in the hopes that they will be allowed to expatriate their money during a future administration. Or, they can walk away and lose it all now.
I’m not aware of any other countries in South America that have currency controls in place. All country’s currency is convertible, the elephant in the room is that Venezuela has enacted exchange controls that have artificially boosted Venezuela’s currency exchange rate to such an extent that nobody really exchanges anything at the gov’t rate, and nothing is for sale at that rate outside of gov’t shopping centres.
When I was there is was 2.5 : 1 USA dollar, now it’s… not worth counting, they’ve begun weighing it…
641,000,000 : 1 Shown at Dolartoday as 641,000 as they dropped 3 zeros from the exchange about 8 -9 years past.
https://dolartoday.com
Best for Chevron to ask Maduro for “proof of life” … before paying any ransom in the form of spare parts, or whatever else Maduro is negotiating for.
Waiting for the airhead in Ottawa, the socialist extremists in Alberta and BC to commence with the program.
At times it seems as though they want to finish the destruction before the next election.
Same reasons the west is still in Canada. It is a river in Egypt…
Some coverage of the unravelling of PDVSA:
https://www.caracaschronicles.com/2018/04/18/explosive-lawsuit-exposes-corruption-and-mafia-wars-at-pdvsa/
now its official. the ‘shytholeness’ of VenezWASa exceeds that of ahfricah. and getting worse by the day.
it’s going to be a friggin blood bath when the chavez fan club starts to get really hungry. aka ‘unintended consequences’
so far silence from mr penn and ms klein, also members of the chavez fan club.