Venezuela's President Hugo Chávez said Thursday his government will seize the local assets of some international oil-service companies starting Friday -- a response to threats by several firms to stop their work in Venezuela because of nonpayment of bills owed by state-run oil giant Petróleos de Venezuela SA.
Earlier Thursday, the National Assembly, dominated by supporters of Mr. Chávez, approved a law letting the government seize assets of oil contractors without following the usual procedures for expropriating businesses. Big oil-services firms such as Texas-based Schlumberger Ltd. and Halliburton Co. aren't expected to be affected by the move, but dozens of other firms are.
The move is the latest sign of trouble in Venezuela's oil industry. Stung by lower prices for its crude-oil exports, Petróleos de Venezuela, or PDVSA, has run up a huge backlog -- roughly $14 billion at the end of 2008 -- of unpaid bills with service companies that do much of the legwork in the oil industry, from maintaining wells to operating tugboats.
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