Venezuelan Embassy: ExxonMobil assets worth US$750mn

ExxonMobil pulled out of its 115,000b/d-capacity Cerro Negro project in the Orinoco last year after it failed to reach a deal with PDVSA on the state's mandated increased stake in the asset. ExxonMobil took the dispute to the World Bank's International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). While US oil major ConocoPhillips also pulled out of Venezuela, California-based Chevron, France's Total, Norway's StatoilHydro, Italy's Eni, BP of the UK and China's Sinopec all reached deals with the government in 2007 to grant PDVSA at least a 60% stake in all JVs operating in the Orinoco belt. Total and Statoil received a total of US$1.1bn from PDVSA in compensation, according to the embassy statement. Discussions are continuing with ConocoPhillips.