Subject: Update on LNG Project - Venezuela
From: [email-masked]
To: [email-masked], [email-masked]
Cc: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 17 May 2001 12:05:00 -0700 (PDT)

Greetings,
These are the latest events related to the Jose LNG project:
A working group from the Ministry of Energy is furiously working to finish 
the Gas Availability Report to be presented to the Ministry of Energy by the 
end of this month. The balance of gas is the variable that, according to the 
Ministry, will determine the fate of gas export projects. PDVSA-Gas is very 
optimistic that the gas will be there (they are participating in the working 
group, and pushing for a positive outcome).
The E&P Gas Round bid is proceeding according to schedule. Bids are expected 
by the end of June and there seems to be significant interests from 
participants. The Gas Availability Report would be made public after the bid 
date, sometime in July (we would know before then, however). 
Although a successful round will definitively help the project, the threshold 
for success seems to be relatively low. If only two or three of the nine 
fields are allocated, the round will still be considered successful. Even if 
the fields are not allocated in this round, PDVSA-Gas would develop some of 
them, and the LNG project would still be approved.
Regards,
ALF