Venezuela ready to help with exploration in Malaysia
Venezuela is ready to jointly explore for oil with Malaysia and help it boost its reserves, President Hugo Chavez
said.
"We can help over there too. We can explore in Malaysia," Chavez told visiting Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah
Ahmad Badawi while touring an oil refinery in eastern Venezuela.
Chavez has already invited Malaysia's state oil and gas company Petroliam Nasional, or Petronas, to participate in
oil projects in Venezuela -- home to the largest crude reserves outside of the Middle East. Chavez said Venezuela
could help Malaysia look for new crude reserves and receive assistance in developing palm oil, which can be used as a
biofuel.
"I know Malaysia has a good reserve of oil," but at its current pace of production, those reserves will last no more
than 20 years, Chavez said. "We modestly offer all the help we can to Malaysia."
Venezuela is aggressively seeking to develop vast deposits of heavy oil in its Orinoco River region. The dark,
tar-like crude was once considered too costly and difficult to produce. However, new technologies to upgrade it into
lighter, more marketable products, combined with higher oil prices, have made it increasingly attractive.
Venezuela believes that once it quantifies and certifies the Orinoco's heavy oil deposits, it could become home to
the largest crude reserves in the world. State oil company Petroleos de Venezuela is working with counterparts from
friendly allies, such as Iran, Russia, China and India in the certification process. Venezuela has invited Malaysia
to join those companies.
Chavez visited Malaysia in August and has sought closer ties with the predominantly Muslim country, which leads the
56-nation Organization of the Islamic Conference. The two governments are expected to sign a series of oil and other
cooperative accords later, including one to study the possibility of jointly building a refinery in Malaysia.
Abdullah, was on a two-day visit with a delegation of businessmen seeking investment opportunities in Venezuela.
