Eni reaches deal with Venezuela for compensation for seized oil field

Italian energy company Eni SpA said on Friday it reached a deal with Venezuela for compensation for the seizure of its Dacion oil field. Dacion, worth an estimated $839 million, was seized in April 2006 by the government of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. Eni had operated the field under a service agreement with Venezuela's state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA, or PDVSA. «Eni believes this settlement represents an important step toward improving and consolidating the cooperation with local authorities and with PDVSA also through the development of new initiatives, especially in the oil-rich Faja region,» the company said in a statement.