Venezuela's PDVSA, Chevron reach $2 billion financing deal

Workers stand in front of a drilling rig at an oil well operated by Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA in Morichal July 28, 2011.

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA said on Wednesday it reached an agreement with Chevron (CVX.N) to secure $2 billion in financing to boost oil production at Petroboscan, a joint venture between the two companies.

Since the end of 2010, Venezuela's energy ministry has been pressuring some 20 joint ventures between PDVSA and foreign energy partners to find extra funding to raise output.

The socialist administration of President Hugo Chavez has threatened to cancel the ventures' permits if they fail to hike production.

PDVSA said Chevron would provide the funds to Petroboscan at a rate of Libor plus 4.5 percent, and the last payment would be made in 2025. The agreement includes preliminary accords to make outstanding payments to Petroboscan, PDVSA said.

A Chevron spokeswoman said the company had no comment.

The joint ventures suffer from recurrent cash flow difficulties due to the late dividend payment by PDVSA.

Petroboscan, located in western Venezuela, produces 115,000 barrels per day. It is 60 percent controlled by PDVSA and 40 percent owned by Chevron.

A lack of investment, especially in the western regions of South America's biggest crude exporter, has led to falling output at the mature fields since 2009.

The OPEC nation has an ambitious production goal of 3.5 million bpd this year, up from the 2.9 million bpd last reported by the government, mostly through investment in the vast Orinoco extra-heavy oil belt. (Reporting by Marianna Parraga and Brian Ellsworth; Editing by Diane Craft)