Venezuela nationalises foreign oil rigs

The Venezuelan government of firebrand President Hugo Chavez said yesterday it was taking control of oil rigs from multinational firms, in the latest of a wave of nationalisations.

Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez, who also heads the state-owned energy company PDVSA, said the firm had in the past ceded control of 18 offshore drilling platforms to foreign giants.

“These companies demand millions for the use of these machines. Faced with this situation, we have decided to nationalise this equipment,” he told the official Venezuelan news agency ABN without elaborating.

PeninsulaOnline