Big Oil gets 'the Chavez treatment' in Venezuela
By Aleksander Boyd
London 12.05.05 | Forbes reported yesterday that some $2 billion in unpaid taxes ought to be forked out by oil firms operating in Venezuela. The source of the information appears to be Joaquin Cedillo, manager of the tax office (SENIAT). On an article published on Sunday's El Nacional Mr Cedillo is quoted as stating “In Venezuela there is no motion for the creation, and much less, the application of retroactivity in the payment of taxes by the petroleum companies that operate in our country". It appears that Cedillo gave such public assurances after having met with representatives of six oil firms conducting E & P activities and other services in the country. However, as it has become customary, Hugo Chavez stated during transmission of his dominical show "I have given the order to PDVSA and SENIAT to calculate, retroactively, all that is owed to us (taxes) and corresponding unpaid interests".
Needless to say that the word that counts is that of Chavez and is quite amusing to see that not even oil firms, whose production contribute with about 1 million BPD to the total Venezuelan output, are free from getting the Chavez treatment. Ergo the only advice, to those thinking that Venezuela is a place where laws and contractual obligations are observed by the ruler, is: think long and hard before investing. Revolutions are such a costly enterprise nowadays...
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