VOL. XLVI

No 1

6-January-2003

OPEC

PDVSA: The Inside Story Of The Complex Relationship Between A Company And Its Nation

The following article, which explains the background to the tensions that exist between Venezuelas governing elite and the state oil company, has been obtained by MEES from a senior PDVSA official.

How Recent Events Began

During the 1980s, a decade after its nationalization, PDVSA was widely accused at home of becoming a state within a state. This derogatory claim alluded to the...