Lack of investment is the reason for fires in Pdvsa facilities

[naaman fletcher]

In the opinion of José Toro Hardy, a former senior director of state-run holding Petróleos de Venezuela (Pdvsa), the fires that blew up in three Pdvsa facilities in less than one week are not casual events. He regards them as the result of having dumped skilled staff, in addition to the failure to make timely investments intended to keep refineries in good working order.

"Not a single one" of Venezuela's refineries has been saved from similar events. He quoted, for instance, failures in the catalytic cracking plants in the refineries of Cardón, Amuay and El Palito.

Despite forecasts, the oil expert fears that the problem will be more and more frequent, "until it is understood that the industry is a serious business and that political speeches do not prevent accidents."

"If you buy a new car and decide to fire the mechanic, and at the same time, you do not conduct maintenance, probably the car will do well for some time, but later on, it will start breaking down. This is exactly what is going on with the Venezuelan oil industry."

While Pdvsa has ruled out any untoward effects on fuel supply, Toro Hardy said that in the case of Curacao, it forms part of the Venezuelan refining system. "Many of the components needed to manufacture gasoline in Venezuela are produced in Isla refinery," he said.

As for domestic refineries, "if they are not working, most of the barrel cannot be converted into light oil; consequently, it is traded as low-value products in the market," Toro Hardy told El Universal.

The expert is worried about the situation of the domestic oil industry and recalled that Pdvsa used to be the second largest oil company in the world. Today, however, the numbers provided by the Executive Office are not reliable.

"In general terms, we can see a very indebted Pdvsa that has mistaken its mission of exploring, producing and trading oil, and tries instead many functions that are not inherent in it."

Translated by Conchita Delgado

http://english.eluniversal.com/2010/09/15/en_eco_esp_lack-of-investment-i_15A4471773.shtml