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Chavez to visit Fidel in December
Chavez to visit Fidel in December
Sunday September 16, 2007
President Hugo Chavez expects to visit Cuba in December to set up an oil refinery to be run bilaterally, Venezuela's ambassador to Cuba said Saturday.
Ambassador Ali Rodriguez also said that Chavez maintains "very good communication" with convalescing Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
Chavez has not been in Cuba to visit his ally, Castro, since June. Last year he visited Castro six times.
Castro, 81, is recovering from intestinal surgery he underwent in July 2006. He handed day-to-day leadership of the country to his brother, defense minister Raul Castro.
"Chavez has always very good communication with Castro," Rodriguez said.
Chavez, who leads his own movement toward socialism, calls Castro his inspiration, and has done his best to supply oil-starved Cuba with petroleum.
Rodriguez previously served as Venezuela's energy ministry, and as head of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), of which Venezuela is the only Latin American member.
The refinery is to operate in Cienfuegos, in central Cuba, and will refine 65,000 barrels of oil per day, rising eventually to 109,000 bpd.
Lack of oil is Cuba's most pressing economic problem, affecting agriculture, manufacturing, and all other parts of the economy.
AFP
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