Venezuela praises decision in ExxonMobil case

[Judi Lynn]

Venezuela praises decision in ExxonMobil case
Venezuela today praised the latest decision by an arbitration panel in a case over the 2007 expropriation of ExxonMobil assets by the government of President Hugo Chavez.

News wires 11 June 2010 19:37 GMT

Rafael Ramirez, Venezuela's energy minister and the president of state oil company PDVSA, said a decision released yesterday night should force ExxonMobil to "drastically reduce" the $10 billion it has been seeking.

He told reporters the decision by the three-member arbitration panel in Washington indicates the panel will listen only to claims from ExxonMobil over higher royalties and taxes that were imposed after February 2006, Dow Jones reported.

That, Ramirez said, is because the decision basically says ExxonMobil can seek damages only for issues after the US company created a Dutch holding company in February 2006, a move he claims was done specifically to allow ExxonMobil to possibly bring arbitration against Venezuela.

ExxonMobil filed an arbitration request in 2007 with the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, a World Bank-aligned entity, in Washington.

Ramirez also said the statement should have an "important" effect on reducing how much other companies can seek from Venezuela over nationalisations. ConocoPhillips is also trying to get Venezuela to pay it for assets seized in 2007 from its heavy oil project.

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