RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept. 20 (Xinhua) -- The presidents of Brazil and Venezuela announced Thursday that they will resume the project of the so-called "Southern Gas Duct," a pipeline aimed at transporting natural gas from Venezuela to Brazil, and to Argentina through Bolivia.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said during a meeting that they will put state-run oil and gas companies Petrobras and PDVSA in charge of the project, whose cost was preliminarily estimated at 20 billion U.S. dollars.
The pipeline, which is expected to be 8,000-km long, will link Venezuela's natural gas production spots to those of Argentina's.
According to Chavez, the pipeline will help the two countries against energy crises.
At the meeting in Manaus, Brazil's rainforest region, Lula and Chavez also announced that Brazil's Petrobras and Venezuela's PDVSA will sign an agreement in December to ratify two joint ventures.
Under one joint venture, an oil refinery will be built in northeast Brazil. The Brazilian government gave the go-ahead to the construction of the Abreu e Lima refinery on Sept. 4.
Petrobras and PDVSA will hold 60 percent and 40 percent stakes respectively in the Brazilian refinery.
The other joint venture involves the exploration and production of oil and gas in the Orinoco Belt, an oil field in Venezuela.
The PDVSA will hold a 60 percent stake in the exploration project, and Petrobra, 40 percent.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said during a meeting that they will put state-run oil and gas companies Petrobras and PDVSA in charge of the project, whose cost was preliminarily estimated at 20 billion U.S. dollars.
The pipeline, which is expected to be 8,000-km long, will link Venezuela's natural gas production spots to those of Argentina's.
According to Chavez, the pipeline will help the two countries against energy crises.
At the meeting in Manaus, Brazil's rainforest region, Lula and Chavez also announced that Brazil's Petrobras and Venezuela's PDVSA will sign an agreement in December to ratify two joint ventures.
Under one joint venture, an oil refinery will be built in northeast Brazil. The Brazilian government gave the go-ahead to the construction of the Abreu e Lima refinery on Sept. 4.
Petrobras and PDVSA will hold 60 percent and 40 percent stakes respectively in the Brazilian refinery.
The other joint venture involves the exploration and production of oil and gas in the Orinoco Belt, an oil field in Venezuela.
The PDVSA will hold a 60 percent stake in the exploration project, and Petrobra, 40 percent.
