PDVSA to file ICC motion July 11

Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA is required to file a motion on July 11 with the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) regarding a dispute about the operations of the Jose oil terminal, spokesperson Julie Gentz from US energy company Williams told BNamericas. Williams owns 45% of the SWEC consortium that operated the terminal until the start of Venezuela's national strike in December 2002, when PDVSA appropriated the terminal and hired replacement workers to operate it. Other partners in the consortium, which operated the terminal since April 1999, are Canadian companies Enbridge (45%) and Northville (10%). SWEC started an arbitration process to recover lost earnings from Jose operations, and the consortium and PDVSA alike have appointed their arbiters. A third arbiter will be appointed by the other two after PDVSA files its motion, Gentz said. "After that things start progressing and we hear that if it goes through the full process it will take about five months," Gentz said. "We hope to have it resolved and we have other assets in Venezuela, so we are hoping that we can come to a good resolution," she added. The consortium claims PDVSA's actions in December 2002 violate an agreement reached in 2001, by which PDVSA retained ownership of the facilities while the consortium was entitled to maintain and operate the port for ten years, as well as providing personnel. The 800,000 barrels a day (b/d) terminal stores and loads crude oil for PDVSA and the heavy oil strategic associations, and has a capacity of 34 vessels per month.