Oil Companies Tell Chavez To Go Suck Eggs

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Exxon Mobil Corp. and ConocoPhillips are walking away from their multibillion-dollar investments in Venezuela, further evidence that the relationship between Western oil companies and oil-rich countries is more troubled than at any point since the 1970s.
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The companies feel they won't get adequate value from the Venezuelan government, so they may pursue arbitration rulings that, even if favorable, mean a long wait for compensation. But the need to replace significant holdings could intensify exploration and result in new finds elsewhere, as happened after the last widespread purge of Western majors from developing nations.

Yesterday, Exxon and Conoco refused to join four other oil companies that signed over majority stakes in giant oil projects to Venezuela's state oil company.

Great. Dynamite your equipment before you leave.

Conoco still wants to recoup its investment, and may go into arbitration to do it:

However, even if a Conoco arbitration claim is successful, it could be years before the company gets any money. Still, Venezuela has considerable international assets that Conoco could attach. These include PdVSA's ownership of Citgo Petroleum Corp. -- which has several valuable refineries in the U.S. -- and of tankers full of crude oil landing in ports along the Gulf Coast and elsewhere. A Citgo spokesman declined to comment.

It would be nice if America owned those American refineries again. To a certain degree it doesn't matter who runs it as long as they are secure domestic facilities. On the other hand, why should the money go to Hugo the Commie?