THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Venezuela Steps Up Tax Actions on Oil Firms: “Venezuelan tax authority Seniat ordered oil company Royal Dutch/Shell Group to pay nearly $131 million in back taxes it said the company owed.”: Friday 15 July 2005

A WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE NEWS ROUNDUP

July 15, 2005; Page A8

CARACAS, Venezuela -- Venezuelan tax authority Seniat ordered oil company Royal Dutch/Shell Group to pay nearly $131 million in back taxes it said the company owed.

Seniat also seized a number of documents from the offices of U.S. oil company Chevron Corp., saying the company had failed to produce the information on request.

Chevron and Shell officials weren't immediately available for comment.

Tax chief Jose Vielma Mora said last week that he would fine and temporarily close the administrative offices of several oil firms for failing to follow tax laws. He said the tax agency's move wouldn't disrupt oil production.

Critics of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez's "zero evasion" tax campaign argue the government is using scare tactics to coerce foreign oil companies into accepting new oil agreements. The Chávez government has argued that various foreign oil companies have been violating oil contracts for years and failed to pay taxes as well.

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