Aug. 1, 2006 – Although published media reports indicate that Venezuelan Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez threatened to stop oil exports to the United States if the federal government continues its "hostile polices" toward the Venezuelan government, Hovensa Vice President and Spokesman Alex Moorhead said Tuesday he didn't know what the impact would be for the St. Croix facility.
"I don't know the answer. That's a bridge we'll cross if we ever get to it," he said.
He pointed out that Hovensa is partly owned by the Venezuelan government's oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela S.A., while a Hess Corp. subsidiary owns the rest.
Moorhead said that while he was aware of the published reports quoting Ramirez, he hasn't heard anything concerning the matter from the company's ownership.
"We're proceeding on the basis it does not apply to us," he said.
Ramirez said in published reports that that some action against U.S. hostility must be taken.
He made his remarks on a trip to Iran with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
In a report, the English language newspaper Khaleej Times indicated that Ramirez' remarks came from the Iranian news agency IRNA. The paper is based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
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