Pdvsa declared an "operational emergency" in the Orinoco Belt between July and September, thus paving the way for awarding contracts without cumbersome tenders and accelerating extraction.
The move could help Venezuela to increase output by 140,000 barrels per day by year's end, or nearly 5 percent, but in recent years such a move has proven to have detrimental long-term effects.
In 2007, Pdvsa declared a comprehensive emergency that helped increase pumping in the short term, but the rise was not sustainable over time and also caused operational and legal problems, due to non-compliances by many of the companies contracted without a public tender.
http://www.eluniversal.com/2011/08/01/pdvsa-intends-to-increase-production-amid-high-debt.shtmlAh, the 'ol no bid contract routine. Another way Chavez is just like W.