By Trevor Thwaites (St.George's correspondent)


ST.GEORGE’S, Grenada: The Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela says that it is keen to unite Latin America and the Caribbean for the benefit of its people. This is the main reason given for the World’s 5th largest Oil Producer, for the initiation of the Petro Caribe Agreement. The Agreement has been struck with 20 countries in the Caribbean and Latin America, where gas and other energy products are purchased from Venezuela under a special arrangement.

Grenada is one of eleven regional countries, which have signed unto the agreement under which oil is bought from Venezuela at 60% of the cost and the next 40% is being paid for over a 25-year period at a small interest rate of 1%. “What we are trying to do is to put on the table as a means of integration our enormous resource of oil that we want to share with our neighbours,” Chairman of PDVS Alejandro Granados, said at a recent press conference in the city.

He was responding to a question from the local press about the benefits his country is expecting from the generous gesture. “The Agreement also includes the possibility that the country can pay in kind. We are also
exploring the possibility what kind of products we can receive from Grenada in return for oil,” the Venezuelan energy official remarked. He indicated that Venezuela was not looking to benefit commercially from the arrangement, but was simply seeking to help its friends.

Most of the Venezuela’s oil is exported to the United States, the United Kingdom and Europe. China has the fastest growing economy in the world at the moment; but the US is still the most industrialized country, which needs vast energy and oil resources to generate its economy. The US consumes 40 million barrels of oil a day, with a significant amount coming from Venezuela. The OECS is said to use approximately 1500 barrels of oil on a daily basis.

Granados stressed that the deal was not intended to benefit his country commercially, but to promote the eradication of social inequalities and the foster improved living standards of the peoples in the Caribbean and Latin America. He said that since the change of government, his country has been trying to improve the relationship with its neighbours in the Caribbean. “President Hugo Chavez has been trying to change the geopolitical reality in terms of integration, corporation and complementality,” Granados told local reporters during the singing of the supply contract for the Petro Caribe Agreement.

If all goes well, the first shipment of oil from Venezuela should arrive within the next three months. Energy Minister the Hon Gregory Bowen says the build up is pretty encouraging with Sol Gas consenting to use their facilities for storage of the products. This is good news since Sol Gas and Texaco were not expected to be involved. Under the arrangement Venezuela will supply 55,000 barrels of Diesel, 85,000 barrels of Oil and 200,000 barrels of Fuel annually. Grenada uses approximately 1200 barrels of oil daily.