CARACAS, 18 March (BelTA) - In May 2010 Venezuela is set to deliver a pilot consignment of 80,000 tonnes of oil to Belarus. Belarus is supposed to receive up to 4 million tonnes of Venezuelan oil by the end of the year. The relevant documents were signed after the Presidents of Belarus and Venezuela Alexander Lukashenko and Hugo Chavez held talks in Caracas on 17 March, BelTA learnt from the presidential press service. The two Presidents continued the negotiations on 17 March. The two heads of state focused their attention on the new areas of cooperation which were identified during this visit of the Belarusian head of state to Venezuela. The two parties signed an estimated 22 agreements on cooperation in petrochemistry, industry, construction, energy and science. One of the most important agreements sealed in Caracas was a contact on Venezuela oil supplies to Belarus. Belarus and Venezuela plan to set up a joint oil supply company within the next two months. Venezuela is expected to hold a 75% stake in the company. Belarus will own 25% of the company’s shares. Crude oil will be transported via the port of Odessa for the further processing at the Mozyr Oil Refinery. The two countries have also considerably advanced in their cooperation in the gas industry. A license signed in Caracas enabled Belarus to develop and produce gas at six deposits of Venezuela. The two sides also signed an agreement to establish a joint venture to provide services in oil production. In 2010 Belarus is set to deliver 2,000 gas kits to Venezuela. The relevant contract was signed during the work of the Belarus-Venezuela joint commission for trade and economic cooperation in Caracas on 11-12 March. Gas deposits in Anaco are currently developed by the Belarus-Venezuela joint venture Petrolera BeloVenezolana. Hugo Chavez stated that an estimated $1.6 million of investments are to be put in the infrastructure development. Belarus and Venezuela have agreed on the supplies of a large batch of Belarusian equipment. Thus, Belarus is to supply Venezuela with 1,300 units of road and construction machinery (MAZ, BelAZ, Amkodor, Minsk Tractor Wheel Plant) with the total cost of $199 million. In the H1 2010 Belarus is expected to deliver almost $20 million worth of BelAZ underground mine trucks and autoloaders. Besides, the two sides signed a contact on the construction of plants in Venezuela to produce MAZ and MTZ equipment with the total capacity of 5,000 and 10,000 vehicles a year respectively. The plants will be constructed by 1 July 2011. The cost of the projects amounts to $55 million. Belarus has also been constructing a brick plant in Venezuela which opening is slated for 1 October 2011. The Belarusian specialists will also construct a plant to assemble the road, construction and utilities equipment with the capacity of 3,000 vehicles a year and a maintenance center for the road and construction, utilities and agricultural equipment and buses. The construction sites will be chosen later. Belarus is to take part in equipping the plants for scrap metal recycling and make proposals for building up an integrated joint company for the storage battery utilization with the total capacity of 15,000 tonnes a year. MAZ special-purpose equipment for scrap metal recycling will be delivered to Venezuela. A $695,000 worth of contract was signed between Belarusian State University and the Engineering Institute of Venezuela in Caracas. Besides, the sides agreed that Belarusian experts would design and construct an agro-town and agricultural manufacturing facilities in the Pedregal region. The two sides signed an agreement on the construction of a 10,000-apartment residential area in the Barinas satellite-town. Belarus is also set to build up a school and a kindergarten in the Maracay town as a present to the Venezuelan people. According to Alexander Lukashenko, this visit to Venezuela has become a historical one. The Belarusian head of state stressed that Belarus had come to Venezuela “as the closest friends and brothers”. “We would like not only to extract oil and gas, but also construct towns and villages here. We want to teach our Venezuelan friends how to do it. In the future Venezuela will have its own specialists, large organizations that will represent this wonderful country in the international area,” the President of Belarus assured. The Venezuelan leader agreed that the implementation of the joint projects needs to be prompted. Hugo Chavez called the visit of his Belarusian counterpart “a very productive regarding the experience exchange”. The two heads of state agreed on their future mutual visits. Thus, Hugo Chavez is expected to visit Belarus in October 2010. Alexander Lukashenko will pay a visit to Venezuela in summer 2011. The Presidents of Belarus and Venezuela have agreed to continue talks on 18 March. БЕЛТА
Written by belta.by
