MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

US contingency plan for a Venezuela oil cut off

United States Congress has begun considering consequences of a potential Venezuelan petroleum cut off given the country's “political instability”.

The study looks at the effects on the U.S. economy of a possible interruption in petroleum supply, contingency plans, and how to cope and mitigate the negative impact of such an action said Robert Robinson, Managing Director for Natural Resources and Environment with the Government Accountability Office, the investigative branch of Congress.

Mr. Robinson explained that experts from GAO will interview U.S. government officials, oil industry corporate experts and hopefully with Venezuelan authorities.

The investigation was requested last November by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee but it only began moving a month ago and should be completed in another eight to ten months.

Indiana Republican Senator Richard Lugar requested the contingency study in a letter sent to GAO Director David Walker, arguing that for the last two years Venezuela's "political instability" had led to direct threats on oil shipments to the United States.

Mr. Lugar emphasized that the State Department had indicated on several occasions that Venezuela was no longer a "trustworthy" source of crude, but the United States still depends on that country to satisfy approximately 15% of its consumption.

"We must make sure that all contingencies are in place to mitigate the effects of a significant shortfall of Venezuelan oil production", wrote Senator Lugar in January.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has repeatedly said he would like to sell more oil to China and other countries, which has raised fears in Washington since Venezuela is the fourth US crude supplier.