Venezuelan President Signs Major Deal with Chinese Development Bank

September 15th 2011 (Venezuelanalysis.com) – On Wednesday Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez signed a long-term agreement with the Chinese Development Bank aimed at financing some 137 development projects planned for the 2013 – 2030 period. The Venezuelan president signed the agreement yesterday in the Presidential Miraflores Palace after meeting with Chen Yuan, the bank’s president, and Zhoa Rongxian, China’s Ambassador to Venezuela.

As part of the agreements, Venezuela plans to double its oil exports to China, from a current 400,000 barrels per day to an expected 1,000,000 by December 2012.   

“It’s great that he (Yuan) is visiting the Caribbean, visiting Latin America,” affirmed Chavez.

“China, the great power, is proving just this: You don’t have to be an empire to be a great power, open to the world, respecting people’s sovereignty…They aren’t the International Monetary Fund (IMF) or anything even close,” Chavez said.

The Venezuelan president went on to explain that the new agreement is based on the principles of “gradualness, planning, and joint development” and that the projects are part of a “strategic, long-term development plan” that has already begun and goes, at least, until 2030.

The China-Venezuela Fund, which was both ratified and extended during yesterday’s talks, is made up of $US 32 billion in Chinese capital available to finance the bi-lateral development agreements reviewed by Chavez and the Chinese representatives.

Plans underway include “the construction of new university-level institutions, of the national railroad, the launching of a second satellite, and the creation of a factory for the production of pharmaceuticals,” explained Chavez.

According to the Venezuelan News Agency (AVN), the agreements are aimed mostly at financing the development of communication technologies, industry, health, and agriculture, including, for example, the installment of satellite production facilities, automobile manufacturing centers, and household appliance factories, among others.

The Venezuelan president also explained that Venezuela seeks to export some one million barrels of oil per day (bpd) to China by the end of next year, a two-fold increase from the current 400,000 bpd exported to China currently. In 2005, this figure was 50,000 bpd.  

Plans are also underway for Venezuela to help build three oil refineries in China at which to process Venezuelan crude oil.