Posted by Pat Sullivan
on July 21, 2009
Central America,
Energy,
Latin America /
1 Comment
By MERCEDES ALVARO
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
July 7, 2009
QUITO — Chevron Corp.’s (CVX) legal battle with indigenous groups in Ecuador appears to be far from over, even if a local court may give an initial ruling by the end of the year.
The $27 billion lawsuit, which started in Ecuador six years ago, is expected to drag out to international tribunals and courts.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs believe an initial verdict could come as early as this year. A Chevron spokesman says that any possible appeals could take decades.
In 2001, Chevron acquired Texaco Inc., which had operations in Ecuador starting in 1964. Texaco had formed a consortium in 1967 with Ecuador’s state-owned oil firm, Petroecuador. Texaco had a 37.5% interest in the venture, and Petroecuador a majority 62.5% stake.
Continue reading…
Tags: Chevron, Ecuador, Energy, Texaco
Posted by Pat Sullivan
on July 15, 2009
Central America,
Energy,
Latin America /
1 Comment
By Darcy Crowe
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
CARACAS (Dow Jones)–The crisis in Honduras is opening a deep rift between U.S. President Barack Obama and his fiery Venezuelan counterpart, Hugo Chavez, four months after they met with a handshake and warm smiles.
The Venezuelan leader is drawing on the ouster of his close ally, Manuel Zelaya, from the Honduran presidency to reawaken the region’s painful memories of U.S. intervention and paint the Obama Administration as complicit in the crisis.
After an initial silence on Washington’s response to the strife roiling the Central American nation, Chavez has started to lambast the U.S. administration with the sort of ferocity he previously reserved for former President George W. Bush.
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Tags: Central America, Energy, Hugo Chavez, Latin America, President Obama
Posted by Stacy Ozol
on June 05, 2009
General Comments,
Latin America /
2 Comments
Claudio Rois, the international project director of Move With Us and
representative of the British Argentine Chamber of Commerce responds to a story
last Friday by Dow Jones Newswires’ Michael Casey: ‘US Judge Finds Argentina In
Contempt Over ANSES Trades’
Your recent article looks at the default on bonds that has prompted a contempt
of court announcement from a U.S. court. However, in the midst of news stories
like this, it is easy to overlook the potential positive lessons to be learned
from Argentina’s economic history – lessons which have not only helped it
survive and thrive through previous financial crises, but could prove invaluable
in helping the wider international community steer through the current downturn.
In many respects, the Argentine economy is ahead of the wider economic curve,
having experienced an unparalleled financial collapse at the start of the
decade. Undoubtedly that crisis resulted in the complete failure of its economic
system and a significant debt default, but it was the corrective nature of the
collapse that actually ensured the economy was able to rebound so successfully.
Unlike its Western counterparts in the current economic crisis, Argentina
focused on protecting the money of its people, not its banks, and actively
sought to systematically overhaul its economy rather than use its own money to
paper over the cracks of a flawed system. Continue reading…
Tags: ANSES, Argentinea, Latin America
