PDVSA Aims For $5.7B Investment In Former Exxon Venture

Venezuela plans an ambitious development program for Petromonagas, a heavy crude upgrader at the heart of the country's legal dispute with Exxon Mobil Corp. With Exxon now out of the oil-rich Orinoco basin, state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela, or PdVSA, and Britain's BP Plc have crafted a $5.7 billion joint plan to operate and expand Petromonagas, a venture formerly known as Cerro Negro, according to a copy of the project's unpublished business plan.