OPEC MEETING Cartel says will 'support' Venezuela in Exxon Mobil row

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Thomson Financial News

2008-03-05 16:02:30 story 2351436

OPEC MEETING Cartel says will 'support' Venezuela in Exxon Mobil row UPDATE

(Updates with Ramirez comments, background)

VIENNA (Thomson Financial) - OPEC members have pledged their support to Venezuela in its dispute with US oil giant Exxon Mobil, at today's production meeting in Vienna.

"The conference expressed its support to the Bolivian Republic of Venezuela and Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA), in the exercise of its sovereign rights over its natural resources, in accordance with international law," the cartel said in an agreed communique from the meeting.

Venezuelan oil minister Rafael Ramirez expressed his satisfaction to reporters as he left the meeting, saying it set an important precedent for the relationships between national oil companies and the oil multi-nationals.

He added, however, that it was too soon to say what action, if any, other OPEC members might be willing to take in their dealings with Exxon.





Read more: http://www.afxnews.com/about488/index.php?lg=en&c=00.00&story=2351436

[murray hill farm]

1. Thank you, judi lynn

I know I have said this before, but i am so gratefull to you and your posts here at DU..and for keeping us all well informed. Looking for your posts is the first thing I do when I log into DU each day. I hate to even think of the hours that you put into the work that you do for us all, but I am much, much appreciative. Thanks, Pat

[Judi Lynn]

3. Your comments are so encouraging. I always read your posts, mexicopat. Thank you so much. n/t

[Joanne98]

2. YAY

[roguevalley]

anytime exxon gets screwed its good by me. :)

[roguevalley]

4. anytime exxon gets screwed its good by me. :)

[Kolesar]

5. The oil exporters are now the world's bankers, so which assets does Exxon think they can seize?

Any letter from Exxon or the US government to the banks demanding $billions is going to be ignored.

[fascisthunter]

6. Great News, Judi! (nt)

[Judi Lynn]

7. Hi, there, fascisthunter. I'll be keeping my eyes out for more on this.

ON edit, just found a new article:

UK Judge In Exxon, PdVSA Case Signals Lack Of PdVSA-UK Link

March 05, 2008: 01:06 PM EST

LONDON -(Dow Jones)- The U.K. judge hearing the $12 billion asset-freeze case between Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and Petroleos de Venezuela SA signaled Wednesday that he agreed that PdVSA has no connection to England - a key argument in PdVSA's defense.

The judge, Justice Paul Walker, queried assertions by ExxonMobil's lawyers that PdVSA may have English bank accounts and questioned ExxonMobil for referring to past cases relating to companies with assets in England.

ExxonMobil decided to go to international arbitration with PdVSA last year, after Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez nationalized the Cerro Negro heavy oil joint venture.

ExxonMobil subsequently secured court orders in the U.K., among other countries, to freeze PdVSA's international assets, which it claims is necessary to ensure it will get paid for the loss of the project and future revenues if an international court rules in its favor.

PdVSA argued that the case doesn't fall under U.K. jurisdiction as PdVSA isn't an English company and has no assets, businesses or bank accounts in the U.K. PdVSA had a subsidiary, PdV UK, but it closed in December 2006. PdVSA argued that the U.K. assets owned by its joint venture with Finnish company Neste Oil ( NY) are too indirect to be taken into account.

Judge Walker asked lawyers representing the U.S. oil company why they were complaining about PdVSA potentially moving assets elsewhere, suggesting that it didn't matter where PdVSA has its assets, so long as it had $12 billion in assets.

More:
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/djf500/200803051306DOWJONESDJONLINE000966_FORTUNE5.htm

[cliss]

8. For once, good news.

I'm encouraged to hear this. For too long, the oil companies have jerked around the countries with the oil supplies.

Especially encouraging:
"in the exercise of its sovereign rights over its natural resources, in accordance with international law," the cartel said"

This means that OPEC actually has some laws to strengthen their position.

[Judi Lynn]

9. OPEC set to support Venezuela on natural resource rights

OPEC set to support Venezuela on natural resource rights

By Majdoline Hatoum
Last update: 9:05 a.m. EST March 5, 2008

VIENNA (MarketWatch) -- The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is set to issue a resolution expressing support for Venezuela's sovereign rights over its natural resources, an OPEC delegate said Wednesday.

The move comes amid an ongoing legal dispute between Venezuela and U.S. oil major Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM:exxon mobil corp

"OPEC will issue a resolution - or a press release - expressing support for Venezuela to exercise its sovereign right over its natural resources," the delegate said.

The delegate said there appears to be broad consensus amongst member nations over the proposed wording of the resolution.

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/opec-set-support-venezuela-natural/story.aspx?guid=%7BDE0CDB83-785F-47E8-A37B-5ADC4DCCF3AA%7D

[Peace Patriot]

10. A couple of important facts about this dispute...

1. The dispute has to do with Venezuela's 60% interest in its own oil reserves--a deal that Norway's Statoil, France's Total, British BP and even Chevron have all agreed to. Only Exxon Mobil and Conoco objected. And only Exxon Mobil went running into "first world" courts to freeze $12 billion in Venezuela's assets, in order to, a) destabilize Venezuela, as part of the Donald Rumsfeld-orchestrated Oil War II--South America*; and b) regain global corporate predator control of the rich Andes oil fields--in Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia and Argentina--where leftist governments, allied with each other, are pursuing a course of social justice and regional self-determination.

2. The profits from this 60% Venezuelan interest in its own oil are being used, by the Chavez government, to build and staff numerous news schools and medical centers in poor areas of Venezuela never before served by government, for small business loans, land reform, low cost housing construction, and other efforts to bootstrap the poor, and for infrastructure development and forward-looking business development, the results of which are already evidenced in Venezuela's 10% economic growth, with the biggest growth in the PRIVATE sector.

-----------------------

*"The Smart Way to Beat Tyrants Like Chávez," by Donald Rumsfeld, 12/1/07
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/30/AR2007113001800.html

Exxon Mobil's economic warfare was the opening shot of Oil War II. The recent Colombian bombing and invasion of Ecuador--killing the chief hostage negotiator of the FARC guerrillas, Raul Reyes, who was in talks with the Presidents of France, Ecuador and Venezuela, on further release of hostages, and on a peaceful settlement of the 40+ year Colombian civil war--was Shot #2, the instigation of a hot war between Colombia (Bush Cartel client state) and its neighbors--for further chaos and destabilization, to create conditions for--as Rumsfeld urges--"swift" U.S. action in support of "friends and allies" in South America. The Bushites don't have any "friends and allies" in South America, except the fascist thugs running Colombia, and the fascist thugs planning coups against the DEMOCRATIC, leftist governments of Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador and Argentina.

[AP]

11. Some other interesting facts I heard on the radio yesterday:

the most Exxon had asked for while trying to negotiate a settlement was 5 billion (Venezuela had offered about 1.5 billion). However, when Exxon went to the courts, they tried to get 12 billion in assets seized.

Also, IIUC, Exxon's existing contract had an arbitration clause, so, by going to the courts they were skipping the arbitration procedure.

I have a problem with arbitration clauses when consumers really have no opportunity to negotiate them out of contracts. But Exxon is a huge company with a lot of power, and if they wanted to be able to go to the courts to get assets seized, they shouldn't have agreed to arbitration in their original contract. What if Exxon had a contract with you that had binding arbitration? Do you think the courts would help you seize their assets?

[MarkR1717]

12. Hurrah for OPEC...

...hope they push the price of oil up to $200 a barrel. Teach those Facist oil company monkeys a lesson. Lets transfer more $$$ to Saudi and Putin, that's what I say.

[Judi Lynn]

13. Kick.

:kick: :kick: :kick: :kick: