How Bad Off Is Oil-Rich Venezuela? It’s Buying U.S. Oil
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Re: How Bad Off Is Oil-Rich Venezuela? It’s Buying U.S. Oil
#2> Oil accounts for half of the Venezuelan government’s revenues
...Who thought that was a good idea?
Re: How Bad Off Is Oil-Rich Venezuela? It’s Buying U.S. Oil
#3> Oil accounts for half of the Venezuelan government’s revenues ...Who thought that was a good idea?
Those that own the oil fields
Re: How Bad Off Is Oil-Rich Venezuela? It’s Buying U.S. Oil
#4> Early this year, the United States began shipping more than 50,000 barrels a day of the light crude that Venezuela needs to prepare its own oil for export
What does this mean? How does this work? Why do you need oil to make oil?
Re: How Bad Off Is Oil-Rich Venezuela? It’s Buying U.S. Oil
#5> Oil accounts for half of the Venezuelan government’s revenues ...Who thought that was a good idea?
Nobody, but the Resource Curse seems to be one of those iron laws that happens inexorably even if people are aware of it (cf. principal-agent problems pushing prices upward), unless very determined action is taken to avoid it (like Norway), and that kind of action wasn't going to happen under Chavez.
Re: How Bad Off Is Oil-Rich Venezuela? It’s Buying U.S. Oil
#6> Early this year, the United States began shipping more than 50,000 barrels a day of the light crude that Venezuela needs to prepare its own oil for export What does this mean? How does this work? Why do you need oil to make oil?
This is addressed in the article: the oil industry in Venezuela is in disarray, so the country can't rely on its own supply. They have enormous reserves, but they can't reliably draw from it or refine it.
Re: How Bad Off Is Oil-Rich Venezuela? It’s Buying U.S. Oil
#7> Oil accounts for half of the Venezuelan government’s revenues ...Who thought that was a good idea?
Under Chavez and his successor Maduro, Venezuela has pursued a socialist policy. I'm talking about straight up nationalization of industries, wealth confiscation, and such. The result was economic catastrophe, capital flight, and brain drain. Venezuela is basically hollowed out. It's not that they aren't taxing everyone else, it's that there is very little profitable industry left but oil.
They turned one of the richest countries in the region into a rapidly deteriorating third-world hell hole.
Re: How Bad Off Is Oil-Rich Venezuela? It’s Buying U.S. Oil
#8> Early this year, the United States began shipping more than 50,000 barrels a day of the light crude that Venezuela needs to prepare its own oil for export What does this mean? How does this work? Why do you need oil to make oil?
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Re: How Bad Off Is Oil-Rich Venezuela? It’s Buying U.S. Oil
#9> Early this year, the United States began shipping more than 50,000 barrels a day of the light crude that Venezuela needs to prepare its own oil for export What does this mean? How does this work? Why do you need oil to make oil?
Venezuela is buying crude oil (the stuff from the ground) from the United States that they will refine into other oil products to be sold.
Re: How Bad Off Is Oil-Rich Venezuela? It’s Buying U.S. Oil
#10> Early this year, the United States began shipping more than 50,000 barrels a day of the light crude that Venezuela needs to prepare its own oil for export What does this mean? How does this work? Why do you need oil to make oil?
Venezuelan oil tends to be very heavy and needs to be mixed with light crude for refinement. It does have its own light reserves, but they've driven the oil industry into the ground and are unable to produce enough light crude to refine their heavy crude production.