10-04-00 Venezuela's PDVSA announced that 60 companies, of which 38 are Venezuelan firms, are qualified to bid for the Anaco-Jose gas pipeline project. Eighty companies had expressed interest in the $ 120 mm project that will be awarded in September. Foreign companies must have a local company as a partner to participate in the project.
The existing Anaco-Jose pipeline can transport up to 550 mm cfpd of gas from the rich fields of the Anaco region of Anzoategui state. Currently, the pipeline transports 320 mm cfpd. The increased capacity will be used to feed gas to the new petrochemical plants and heavy oil upgrades being constructed in Jose as well as electricity and cement plants, all of which have already signed contracts with PDVSA Gas to secure long-term gas supplies.
The plans for the Anaco-Jose system call for its capacity to be expanded to 1 bn cfpd during the next 5 years. The private partners selected to expand the pipeline will form a joint venture with PDVSA Gas that will own and operatethe pipeline. The private partners will fund the expansion of the pipeline while PDVSA Gas will contribute the existing infrastructure as part of its share of the venture. PDVSA Gas will hold a minority interest in the project.

Qualified Venezuelan companies: ALSTOM ATA, Congeca Construcciones Monserca, Construcciones Robica, Constructora Hermanos Furlanetto, Constructora Procalco, Constructores Venezolanos, Corporacion EDC, CP Gas D.I.T.-Harris, Ehcopek, Flag Instalaciones, Ghella Sogene, Grupo Centec Hermanos Medico Ingenieros Electricistas y Mecanicos, Inversiones Parraviana.
N&V Consultores, Otaola Ingenieria,Otepi,PCI Ingenieros Consultores, PetroLAGO, Petroleum Metallurgic Corporation, Phoenix Internacional, Progesi, Proyecta, R.L.G. y Asociados, Sade Ingenieria y Construccion, Sadeven Industrias, Segema, Sociedad de Constructores Somor, Suelopetrol.
S.A.C.A. Tecnoconsult, Venezolana de Proyectos Integrados Vepica, Venezolana Inversiones y Construcciones Clerico, YY A Yanes & Asociados Estudios y Proyectos, Zulia Industrial Constructions.

Foreign Companies: Alberta Energy Company (AEC Pipelines), CMS Energy (CMS Gas Transmission and Storage), CNG (CNG International), The Coastal Corporation (Coastal Gas Venezuela), Constructora Norberto Odebrecht (Constructora Norberto Odebrecht de Venezuela), Enbridge International, Enron Corporation (Enron Gas de Venezuela), Gas Natural SDG, Groupe GTM, Itochu Corporation, Marubeni Corporation, Mitsui & Co., Perez Companc, Phillips Petroleum, Ruhrgas (Pipeline Engineering), Promigas E.S.P., GE Capital (PSG International), Skanska USA (SADE Ingenieria y Construccion), Grupo Techint (Tecgas -Techint), Transportadora de Gas del Sur, Williams Companies (Williams International).