Tax move by Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez
Chavez boosts state's take from the oil patch
PRESIDENT Hugo Chavez has unveiled a revamp of the Venezuela’s upstream regime, hiking the already-hefty 60% tax rate on oil exports to as much as 95%. But the massive rise is not as onerous as it looks and may not prompt an exodus from the nation’s oil patch. Under the new regime, a 95% tax will be levied on oil exports when prices exceed $100 a barrel. The price is based on the Venezuelan basket, an average price of six domestic crudes, rather than international benchmarks such as Brent. The progressive tax kicks in when prices hit $70 a barrel, with an 80% rate applying to the excess, increasing to 90% when the basket price goes over $90/b, and hitting 95% when the $100/b threshold is rea
Also in this section
5 March 2026
Gas is a central pillar of Colombia’s energy system, but declining production poses a significant challenge, and LNG will be increasingly needed as a stopgap. A recent major offshore gas discovery offers hope, but policy improvements are also required, Camilo Morales, secretary general of Naturgas, the Colombian gas association, tells Petroleum Economist
4 March 2026
The continent’s inventories were already depleted before conflict erupted in the Middle East, causing prices to spike ahead of the crucial summer refilling season
4 March 2026
The US president has repeatedly promised to lower gasoline prices, but this ambition conflicts with his parallel aim to increase drilling and could be upended by his war against Iran
4 March 2026
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed following US-Israel strikes and Iran’s retaliatory escalation, Fujairah has become the region’s critical pressure release valve—and is now under serious threat
