So I wanted to see what sort of commentary The Economist had on Chavez. According to The Economist Hugo needs $75 barrel oil. And reading between the lines of recent articles in the media clearly shows that Vz politics is one of diversion and back pedaling. The economic truth is his country is in deep trouble. I don't see how he *could* or anyone *could* buy out KRY (for fair value). The alternatives look to be either:

1) Seize the property and ignore any agreements with KRY or

2) Go ahead with KRY as originally agreed upon

A 50/50 joint venture where your Partner doesn't poney up the money to get things started then is looking for payment once the work is underway I really don't see very appealing to a project that is still a couple of years away from productions. Especially in this money climate.

http://www.economist.com/world/ameri...

Mr Chávez faces a fresh electoral test later this year. On November 23rd the country will vote for new state governors and mayors. Crime rates are dreadfully high—successive interior ministers have failed to do anything effective to tackle the problem—and the economy is slowing. Now inflation is surging towards 30%. A big defeat for Mr Chávez’s supporters looks increasingly plausible.

If he were to lose in November, that would, in turn, render all but impossible the revival of his plan to flout the constitutional ban on his re-election to the presidency in 2012. And if his re-election is not going to happen, then the race to find a successor could get under way in earnest.

Among Venezuelan political commentators there are those who believe that the introduction of unpopular measures, followed by partial retreats, amounts in itself to a strategy. They believe that the president is seeking to unsettle the political climate to such an extent that he retains the option to suspend the November elections if the polls look bad for him.

A less conspiratorial interpretation is that the once surefooted Mr Chávez is losing his way. A few months ago, for instance, the government decided on a series of measures to prevent the economy from overheating. The annual growth rate promptly slowed by around four percentage points in the first quarter, to 4.8%. Now the president is preparing a partial reversal of course. It is hard to avoid the conclusion that, far from executing a master-plan, the former army officer is becoming an expert at U-turns.