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Gold9472
07-17-2005, 02:28 PM
Venezuela tightens control over oil industry

http://www.eians.com/stories/2005/07/17/17mol.shtml

Indo-Asian News Service

Caracas, July 17 (IANS) Venezuela went ahead with a campaign to tighten control over its oil industry by taking action against illegal practices by oil companies, reports Prensa Latina.

With a lawsuit filed against Anglo-Dutch oil company Shell for tax evasion and the confiscation of financial data from US-based Chrevon-Texaco, Venezuela has advanced the campaign to tighten control over its oil industry.

A statement by National Customs and Tax Management Service (SENIAT) said Shell has already been ordered to pay $131 million in back taxes.

If Shell complied with the payment demand within the 15 days established by law, it would only have to pay 10 percent in interest and fines. If it failed to do this, the penalties could increase to up to 250 percent, the statement warned.

SENIAT officials said the financial data was temporarily confiscated from Chrevon because the company had failed to produce it on request.

Both cases form part of a probe into the activities of foreign oil companies, after finding irregularities in 32 oil field operating agreements involving foreign partners signed between 1992 and 1997.

Those foreign firms are paying merely one percent in royalties, which only applies in exceptional cases, while they should be paying more than 16 percent.

In back taxes and unpaid royalties, Venezuela is owed $4 billion, authorities said.