Venezuela and India teamed up yesterday for exploration and production of oil and natural gas in eastern Venezuela.

State-owned Petroleos de Venezuela SA will hold a 60 per cent stake in the joint venture, Venezuelan Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez said. The rest will be controlled by Oil and Natural Gas Corp., India's top petroleum exploration firm.

Ramirez, left, said ONGC will invest $450 million in the project, called Petrolera IndoVenezolana.

Venezuela estimates that, over the next 25 years, the venture will yield 232 million barrels of crude from the San Cristobal oil field, spanning 160 square kilometres in the eastern states of Anzoategui and Guarico. Production is expected to begin within three years. ... Read full article