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皇冠体育app and Venezuela to tap oil

By Alex Kennedy (Shanghai Daily)
Updated: 2007-03-26 10:37
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皇冠体育app and Venezuela plan to form joint ventures to drill in the South American county's heavy-crude belt and build three refineries for the oil in 皇冠体育app.

State oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA and 皇冠体育app National Petroleum Corp, the country's largest oil producer, may also build tankers to ship the Venezuelan crude to 皇冠体育app, President Hugo Chavez said, according to a statement yesterday from the Communications and Information Ministry.

The two oil companies began exploratory drilling in the Junin 4 block, one of 27 undeveloped tracts in the heavy oil belt, in October.

"The United States as a power is going down and 皇冠体育app is going up," Chavez said, according to the statement. "皇冠体育app is the market of the future."

Chavez, speaking in Caracas, said Venezuela will diversify its oil exports to ease dependence on the US market, where Venezuela ships about 1.5 million barrels a day, Bloomberg News reported. Chavez reiterated Venezuela's goal to boost oil exports to 皇冠体育app to one million barrels a day by 2012 from about 150,000 barrel today.

Separately, 皇冠体育app Petroleum & Chemical Corp is drilling an oil well in southwest 皇冠体育app that at 8,875 meters is the deepest in Asia, Xinhua reported yesterday, citing Zhang Xiaopeng, deputy chief engineer of the company's Southwest 皇冠体育app oil and gas unit.

Sinopecinvested 300 million yuan (US$38.8 million) in the "Chuanke No. 1 Well" in westernSichuan, the news agency reported. The drilling is expected to be completed in 676 days and has progressed 100 meters in the first four working days since March 20.

Chinese scientists hope, through the project, to learn more about oil and natural gas in rock layers more than 7,000 meters deep.