Looks like there is a pattern here of going back on statements. Hopefully that applies in this case with this mid-level official.

This tidbit is from Today - Mining Journal Online

Venezuela`s President Hugo Chavez said on Tuesday he wants a "win-win" takeover deal with Argentine steelmaker Ternium, just days after threatening to expropriate the company`s local unit.

His vice president and other top officials met with a delegation from Ternium to discuss the price the government will pay for the company`s Venezuelan steel plant, Sidor, which President Chavez has vowed to nationalize. The meeting ended with an agreement to continue talks on the takeover next week, according to a company official who asked not to be named as negotiations over Venezuela`s biggest steel producer were meant to be private. That eased some pressure on Ternium.

At the weekend, Chavez had said Ternium was "crazy" for claiming its holdings in the Venezuelan plant are worth US$4 billion and threatened to expropriate the property this week if the two sides did not quickly strike a deal. "We are looking for agreement, a win-win consensus," Chavez said during a televised cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

Chavez has nationalised large swathes of the economy in the South American oil nation and has typically paid a fair price for property taken over by the government. The government has offered US$800 million, minus outstanding debts that are expected to exceed US$200 million.

On Tuesday, Venezuela`s Congress also reinforced the government`s negotiating position by declaring the assets of national interest in a move that opened the way to a possible expropriation should Chavez choose that option.