Venezuela to kick start Cuban refinery

[XXPANTHAXX]

Cuba and Venezuela have stepped up oil cooperation

Venezuelan state oil company, PDVSA, has formed a joint venture with
Cuba to revamp an unfinished Soviet-era refinery on the island and
supply it with oil.

The venture, known as PDV-Cupet, will be 49% owned by Venezuela with
Cupet, the Cuban state oil company, taking a 51% stake, PDVSA said in a
press release on Tuesday.

Venezuela and Cuba will invest between $800 million and $1 billion in
the joint venture.

Agreements signed on Monday guaranteed Venezuelan crude of 70,000 barrel
per day (bpd) to the currently unused refinery on the shore of
Cienfuegos Bay in south-central Cuba.

The agreement would bring total Venezuelan oil shipments to Cuba to
160,000 bpd. PDVSA's statement did not say when the refinery would begin
operations.

The revamped refinery would help Cuba to reduce its imports of fuel. It
would also help supply energy to neighbouring Caribbean nations as part
of Chavez's energy integration efforts.

The refinery was built with Soviet aid, but work on the
all-but-completed plant stopped when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991
and plunged Cuba into severe economic crisis.

PDVSA has studied the possibility of investing in the plant since Chavez
took office in 1999. Fidel Castro, the Cuban leader, and Rafael Ramirez,
the Venezuelan Oil Minister attended the signing of the agreement.

Venezula's oil officials said last year they planned to invest $60
million to $100 million to activate the refinery and convert the plant
to process heavy sour Venezuelan crude rather than the lighter oil it
was designed to take.

[GT4LIFE]

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRASPECK TO DE PEOPLE OF VENEZUELA.
THE BLACK AFRICAN, INDIGENOUS AND/OR SO-CALLED "Poor" PEOPLE THAT IS.
Chavez is upholding the right now more than the vast, vast majority of world leaders,
However, The People shouldn't place any trust in Chavez, because if history is anything to go by, he will end up selling the people out (not saying he will, Hugo could always prove me wrong).
I do feel, though, that The People would be best off putting trust in THEMSELVES.
Hugo Chavez is just one of em.