Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Tuesday directed the country’s state-owned companies to “immediately” begin to explore and exploit the oil, gas and mines in Guyana’s Essequibo region, a territory larger than Greece and rich in oil and minerals that Venezuela claims as its own.

The announcement came a day a day after Maduro got the victory he sought in a weekend referendum on whether to claim sovereignty over the region.

Maduro said he would “immediately” proceed “to grant operating licenses for the exploration and exploitation of oil, gas and mines in the entire area of our Essequibo.” He also ordered the creation of local subsidiaries of Venezuelan public companies, including oil giant PDVSA and mining conglomerate Corporación Venezolana de Guayana.

  • @ours
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    241 year ago

    So instead of failing at one country, Maduro and Co. can fail another country as well, fantastic!

    And it’s not like Venezuela didn’t have everything one could dream to be a paradise: oil, minerals, forest, land, hydro, beautiful beaches, amazing and varied natural wonders… Everything mismanaged to the ground. And now a two-bit invasion perhaps inspired by their buddy Putin? I bet they wouldn’t try that with French Guyana, Brazil or Colombia but who knows these days with crazy autocrats?

    The World certainly doesn’t need another conflict but perhaps this will turn bad and break Chavez’s “legacy” and give Venezuela a chance not to be governed by more thieves (one can dream).