Brazil's state-owned oil company will raise fuel prices by almost 10% on Sunday because of a reduction in global output.

The increases is expected to push Brazil's inflation rate above the 11% mark.

Prices have already been rising after the currency, the real, lost 35% of its value because of speculators' fears about leftist President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Petrobras said the price of cooking gas for consumers will increase 7.7%.

Global oil prices have risen sharply because of US threats to start a war with Iraq and a strike in Venezuela against President Hugo Chavez, which has brought output at the world's fifth largest oil exporter to a standstill.

Hostage to markets

Brazilian fuel prices are at the mercy of international oil and currency markets.

The country's fuel market was deregulated last January and Petrobras has been adjusting its prices in accordance.

Despite being a substantial exporter of oil, Brazil lacks refining capactiy and must import about a quarter of the 1.8 million barrels that it consumes daily.

Petrobras also imports about 40% of the natural gas used in the country.

news.bbc.co.uk

news.ft.com By Andy Webb-Vidal in Caracas Published: December 28 2002 4:00 | Last Updated: December 28 2002 4:00 Venezuela is this weekend expected to take delivery of a shipment of petrol from Brazil, marking what industry analysts say will be the first time the nation has needed to import fuel in modern times.

A skeleton staff of dockers at Puerto La Cruz, in the east, were last night preparing to berth and unload the Amazon Explorer, a tanker laden with 520,000 barrels of petrol from Petrobrás, Brazil's state oil company.

That Venezuela, until a month ago the world's fifth largest exporter, has begun importing fuel demonstrates the size of the crisis gripping the country's oil industry and economy as a result of a strike by managers and workers at state-owned Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA).

The stoppage by an estimated 30,000 oil workers, who are demanding that President Hugo Chávez resign and call early elections, is now into its 27th day, with no sign of an end.

Ramón Espinasa, an oil industry consultant at the Inter-American Development Bank and a former chief economist at PDVSA, said the importing of petrol showed the severity of the strike at the oil company. "Its refineries are practically shut."

Before the strike began at the beginning of the month, PDVSA was producing 2.85m barrels of oil per day and exporting 2.4m b/d, with more than half going to the US.

But with only the refinery at Puerto La Cruz operational, refined product output has dropped to 68,000 b/d, cutting off exports and starving the domestic market of fuel and cooking gas. Motorists wait for up to 70 hours for rationed quantities of fuel in the capital.

The shipment from Brazil was requested by Mr Chávez and received the approval of both Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Brazil's president, and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, president-elect, who is due to take office next week.

Political opponents of Mr Chávez reacted angrily to news that fuel imports were on their way and accused the Brazilian government of interfering in Venezuela's domestic affairs.

Due to food shortages arising from the strike, Venezuela this week also began importing basic foodstuffs, including meat and milk from neighbouring Colombia and rice from the Dominican Republic.

Desde hace mucho tiempo nos venimos haciendo esta pregunta quienes pudimos detectar desde el propio 4F quién realmente es este personaje. Predijimos con elevado éxito su comportamiento posterior, mientras el ciudadano común, el pueblo, quien esperanzado en este nuevo salvador de la patria, tomo actitudes absurdas que rallaban en lo irracional. Vimos como familiares muy cercanos nos discutían con vehemencia que lo propuesto por Chávez, basado en la doctrina bolivariana, era lo que necesitaba el país, es decir, que bastaba con “cantar el himno nacional a cada momento” (repetición de Luis Herrera), “..que la corrupción de los funcionarios públicos debía ser castigada ejemplarmente con el fusilamiento del corrupto” y “que los americanos estaban signados por la providencia a esclavizar a los pueblos del  mundo”.

Mientras mas avanzaba su posibilidad de acceder a la presidencia de la republica vimos surgir nuevas invenciones que gustaron mucho a ese pueblo, siendo las principales el de “La Democracia Participativa” y la famosa “Constituyente”, expresiones como “freír la cabeza de los adecos en aceite” fueron música para una mayoría que pensaba que nuestros principales males eran esos adecos y copeyanos corruptos que durante 40 años habían dilapidado la riqueza nacional. Sin embargo, ya en este punto muchas personas de ese pueblo comenzaron a sospechar que algo no marchaba bien, términos como “Oligarcas” para definir a una clase media exitosa, restaron un alto porcentaje de votantes que el propio 4F lo admiraron al pronunciar el famoso “Por Ahora”, mientras Arias, Urdaneta, Chirinos, Guyón y otros no asimilaban lo que había sucedido. Posterior a esto e inmediatamente  asumida la presidencia comenzó el carnaval de la constituyente. Se eligieron ciento y tanto de constituyentes; joroperos, brujos, homosexuales, mujeres, indios, negros (sin menoscabar la condición de ninguno), pensaron que ellos eran especiales y no solo reclamaron espacios en la constituyente, sino que abogaron para que se incluyesen artículos que especialmente los beneficiara, sin detenerse a pensar que una constitución consagra los derechos individuales de la población y que ni siquiera las regiones (Estados y Municipios) pueden reclamar espacios en la misma, pues para esto cuentan con las constituciones o leyes en sus estados en el entendido que estas tienen que estar apegadas a esa constitución Nacional.

Toda esta apología viene a tratar de auto convencernos de que no podemos cometer nuevamente los mismos errores, no podemos pretender que después de salir de Chávez, como estamos seguros que sucederá en un corto tiempo, nuestros problemas se resolverán inmediatamente y que otro Mesías aparecerá. Todavía nos sorprendemos al oír personas que a sabiendas de lo difícil de la situación se preguntan como el Chapulín, “y ahora… ¿quien podrá defendernos?”.  OJO,  YA TUVIMOS NUESTRO “Chávez del Ocho”. Tomemos como ejemplo lo que ha sucedido en la llamada Coordinadora Democrática, cuando la oposición dejo de tirarle flechas a la luna y comenzó a organizarse (dejando claro que esta organización comienza con la CTV y FEDECAMARAS), se inicia lo inevitable; “La Caída De Esta Falacia”, sin embargo, debemos entender y sobre todo esos políticos que si bien su participación es indispensable, es la ciudadanía quien debe seleccionar a sus interlocutores. Aquí quien pidió a gritos El Paro fue el ciudadano común y mas bien se corrió el peligro de que ese ciudadano le pasara por encima a la coordinadora, si no se tomaba la decisión en forma inmediata. Los venezolanos no queremos ver a estos personeros reclamando espacios por un liderazgo que alguna vez tuvieron y ya se mostraron algunos síntomas con la firma en Altamira donde solo falto la firma  de CAP, pues firmaron personajes de todo tipo.

No debemos confiar en una sola persona para dirigir al país  en estos tiempos difíciles, debemos tener claro que la situación es grave, puede ser que una sola persona tenga los proyectos e ideas para solventar la crisis, pero debemos buscar y proporcionar el equipo para ejecutarlo.

Ya muchos analistas comienzan a mencionar la etapa de transición, sin embargo, hemos analizado desde hace mucho las alternativas propuestas. En primer lugar, la enmienda constitucional basada en la reducción del periodo presidencial, para después aplicar el articulo 72 de Referendo Revocatorio y recientemente la del Referendo Consultivo (dando por sentado que Chávez renuncie), nos presagian una difícil etapa de transición. La presidencia será asumida por el Vicepresidente (a) quien llamará a elecciones en 30 días, sin embargo, el resto de los poderes permanecerá hasta el fin de sus periodos porque así lo establece la constitución y habrá que inventar otro referendo para convocar a unas elecciones generales.

Nuestra proposición la explicamos aquí detalladamente. Debemos aclarar que la misma ha sido enviada desde enero de este año a diversas organizaciones (Coordinadora Democrática, Primero Justicia, Acción Democrática, Copey y otras) y a personajes de la vida nacional (Alberto Quirós Corradi, Carlos Blanco, Alfredo Toro Hardy, Emeterio Gómez, Luis Giusti y otros) y a decir verdad por las respuestas obtenidas pareciera no haber gustado. Sin embargo, mientras más nos acercamos al final, más viabilidad le vemos, y le proponemos a través de este medio, que usted lo analice y si lo considera viable, lo ponga en marcha y de esta forma, al igual que sucedió con El Paro, estas organizaciones asuman la responsabilidad de llevarlo adelante.

www.comosalirdechavez.ve.gs

news.bbc.co.uk

Venezuela has begun importing oil as an opposition-led strike to force the resignation of President Hugo Chavez leads to further oil and food shortages.

The announcement from the world's fifth largest oil exporter came as striking executives of Venezuela's state oil firm, PDVSA, voted to continue the strike which began on 2 December.

Several opposition rallies were taking place on Thursday as mediators scheduled more talks to end the crisis.

Thousands of protesters demonstrated in the streets of Caracas and at the PDVSA headquarters.

'Unfriendly' Brazil's state oil firm, Petrobras, is shipping 520,000 barrels of oil to Venezuela as the government seeks overseas help to cope with domestic fuel shortages.

The ship carrying the fuel will arrive by the weekend, Brazilian officials said.

Venezuela is also to begin an oil-for-food programme with the Dominican Republic, the agriculture minister announced, with a rice shipment due to arrive later on Thursday on board a Venezuelan navy vessel.

Talks with Colombia aimed at importing milk and meat are also going on.

The opposition condemned the Brazilian assistance as unfriendly, as oil executives vowed to continue the shutdown.

"We oil workers will remain untiring in our struggle until he [President Chavez] resigns or accepts calling elections," Juan Fernandez, one of the striking PDVSA managers said.

"We will continue until what we are demanding comes true," Juan Fernandez said.

"This is a fight of a people who are demanding liberty!" said Timoteo Zambrano, an opposition negotiator at talks sponsored by the Organisation of American States.

"The international community cannot ask for the impossible" - call off the strike and resume oil exports, Mr Zambrano said.

Oil provides about 70% of Venezuela's export revenues.

The government is only able to maintain exports at between 5% and 10% of the usual 2.7 million barrels per day.

Mediation

Mr Zambrano said the opposition had three proposals at talks sponsored by the OAS - which began on Thursday afternoon:

• Mr Chavez should quit
• Mr Chavez should call a referendum on his whether he should continue in office in early 2003
• Mr Chavez should guarantee the jobs of striking PDVSA workers who have been sacked.

OAS chief Cesar Gaviria, who has put forward a 24-point plan, has indicated that there has so far been no real progress but both sides are, he believes, still willing to examine the proposals.

The opposition, which includes political parties, unions and business leaders, accuse President Chavez of economic mismanagement and authoritarian rule.

They want him to step down and elections to be brought forward.

But Mr Chavez, who was elected in 1998 and survived a coup attempt in April, insists he will stay on until a referendum on his rule next August - halfway through his current term.

Long queues have become a daily sight at petrol stations, as motorists wait for hours to get rationed fuel.

The United States is reducing its representation in Caracas as a result of the strike, ambassador Charles Shapiro announced on Thursday.

"We have closed the trade and commerce office in the embassy and we are extremely concerned," Mr Shapiro said.

www.forbes.com Reuters, 12.26.02, 3:42 PM ET

CARACAS, Venezuela, Dec 26 (Reuters) - British Gas <BG.L> will not bid on developing a natural gas block in the offshore Deltana region, a multi-million-dollar development it had been pre-selected to make an offer on, a company spokeswoman said. A spokeswoman for the company, which was chosen in August by the government to partner with U.S. oil major ChevronTexaco (nyse: CVX - news - people) in a bid for Deltana's Block 2, said the decision had nothing to do with the country's ongoing strike, now in its fourth week. "It was a strictly commercial decision," the spokeswoman said. Gas production from the region is slated to feed a planned 4.7 million tonne per year liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant that will export gas to the giant U.S. market by 2007. Venezuela's Ministry of Energy and Mines received bids for three blocks in the Deltana region near gas-rich Trinidad last week, in the midst of a strike by foes of President Hugo Chavez which has virtually halted the energy sector of the world's No. 5 crude exporter. ChevronTexaco offered $19 million to develop Block 2 without BG, while French major TotalFinaElf <TOTF.PA> offered $100,000 for Block 3. Norwegian firm Statoil <STAT.OL> offered $32 million For Block 4 while competitor TotalFinaElf offered $5.15 million. British major BP has separately been in talks for Deltana's Block 1. All firms would partner with state oil firm PDVSA. The government hopes to raise $4 billion through investment in Deltana. The opposition strike, which has the support of many PDVSA executives and managers, has severely reduced the OPEC nation's oil sales that provide about half of government revenues. Government efforts to break the strike using replacement workers have met with little success, and the dissident oil firm employees have said that they will not return to their jobs until Chavez is out of office. In Deltana, Venezuela is seeking to recreate the success of neighboring Trinidad, which has built one of the largest LNG export projects in the Atlantic basin. Copyright 2002, Reuters News Service