CARACAS�A US consortium headed by Enbridge Inc. has agreed to provide operations and maintenance services for a major oil export terminal in northeastern Venezuela, state oil corporation Petroleos de Venezuela SA reported on Monday.
The agreement ends months of dispute regarding a $385 million contract signed in 1998 under which Enbridge and its partner Williams were scheduled to purchase the facility at Jose, Anzoategui state.
After Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez took office in February of 1999, PDVSA terminated the deal to sell the facility, arguing that the terminal�which handles 800,000 b/d of Venezuelan crude�had strategic sovereign value to Venezuela (OGJ Online, July 17, 2000).
PDVSA also had said the consortium was unable to obtain all the required government permits to move forward the purchase deal.
"The terms and conditions of the agreement are favorable to both sides because while PDVSA keeps the ownership of the assets, the consortium�through a 5-year agreement that will be renewable�will have the responsibility of providing personnel services and efficiently maintaining the operations at the terminal that receives and ships crude from current and future strategic associations," PDVSA said.
PDVSA has four strategic associations with foreign oil companies to produce and upgrade 650,000 b/d of extra heavy crude oil from the Orinoco Oil Belt. The oil will be shipped through the Jose oil export terminal, which can serve 34 ships per month.