oil powerhouse Venezuela struggles to keep lights on

[franksolich]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081023/wl_nm/us_venezuela_electricity

Oh my.

One wonders what Doug's ex-wife thinks of this.

Oil powerhouse Venezuela struggles to keep lights on
By Brian Ellsworth Brian Ellsworth – Wed Oct 22, 11:49 pm ET Reuters –  …

SAN FELIX, Venezuela (Reuters) – Despite having some of the world's largest energy reserves, Venezuela is increasingly struggling to maintain basic electrical service, a growing challenge for leftist President Hugo Chavez.

The OPEC nation has suffered three nationwide blackouts this year, and chronic power shortages have sparked protests from the western Andean highlands to San Felix, a city of mostly poor industrial workers in the sweltering south.

Shoddy electrical service is now one of Venezuelans' top concerns, according to a recent poll, and may be a factor in elections next month for governors and mayors in which Chavez allies are expected to lose key posts, in part on complaints of poor services.

The problem suggests that Chavez, with his ambitious international alliances and promises to end capitalism, risks alienating supporters by failing to focus on basic issues like electricity, trash collection and law enforcement.....

Looks like Yugo's screwing up.....again.

[Duke Nukum]

OPEC is meeting tomorrow, or maybe today depending on what day it is on that side of the world right now, to decide if they want to cut production.  I heard that $60+/barrel is fine with the Arab countries but Venezuela and Iran need the price/barrel more in the $90 range.

The trouble with Hugo Land is since he came to power he is pretty much a one trick pony, looting his own country's national resources to try an parlay that into a bigger role on the world stage, which is fine when the price of oil is high.

[Chris_]

OPEC is meeting tomorrow, or maybe today depending on what day it is on that side of the world right now, to decide if they want to cut production.  I heard that $60+/barrel is fine with the Arab countries but Venezuela and Iran need the price/barrel more in the $90 range.

The trouble with Hugo Land is since he came to power he is pretty much a one trick pony, looting his own country's national resources to try an parlay that into a bigger role on the world stage, which is fine when the price of oil is high.

You can add Russia to that list of countries that need the higher oil price.  The only reason Russia's stock market hasn't completely collapsed over the last month or so of falling oil prices is that the government keeps shutting it down the moment the trap door is triggered.

[jinxmchue]

Don't hear much about ol' Hugo on the DUmp anymore, do we?  For a while, he was almost a deity there (almost because they're mostly atheists over there).

[Duke Nukum]

You can add Russia to that list of countries that need the higher oil price.  The only reason Russia's stock market hasn't completely collapsed over the last month or so of falling oil prices is that the government keeps shutting it down the moment the trap door is triggered.

I think they were all disappointed today as OPEC only reduced production by something like 1.5 million barrels. Yesterday the prediction was it needed to be reduced by at least 2 million for the reduction to stop the free fall of oil.

So, no lights for Hugo and his Brotherhood of Thugs.

[Duke Nukum]

Don't hear much about ol' Hugo on the DUmp anymore, do we?  For a while, he was almost a deity there (almost because they're mostly atheists over there).

They're melonists and they dumped him fast when it turned out he was related to the Cucurbitaceae family.