March 8, 2006
Venezuela to buy three-dozen Brazilian-made oil tankers

(Dominican Today) - "The Venezuelan government has reached a deal to buy 36 Brazilian-made big oil tankers at a cost exceeding $3 billion, the local press reported.

According to O Globo newspaper, the governments of both countries reached a deal on the construction of the vessels, which will be built by shipyards in different parts of Brazil.

Also in the running for these contracts were Argentine and Spanish shipyards, which will build five and two tankers, respectively, O Globo reported, citing the head of the Sinaval national association of Brazilian shipbuilders, Ariovaldo Rocha.

The tankers will be assembled by five Brazilian shipyards, three located in Rio de Janeiro state, one in northeastern Pernambuco state and another in the southern state of Santa Catarina.

According to Rocha, the construction project to be carried out by a subsidiary of Brazil's state-owned oil company Petrobras for Venezuelan state-run energy giant PDVSA will create more than 10,000 new jobs and allow 40,000 other workers to remain employed.

Last year, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his Venezuelan counterpart, Hugo Chavez, broke ground on a fuel refinery that will be jointly operated by their countries' state-owned oil firms.

The two leaders described the move as the first step on a path to regional energy integration.

The refinery, which is to begin operations in 2011, will supply northeastern Brazil - a region of 20 million people that accounts for 19 percent of national fuel consumption - with gasoline, diesel, liquefied petroleum gas and petroleum coke, which mainly powers blast furnaces but is starting to be used for electricity generation".