About a dozen foreign energy companies in Venezuela have been authorized to exchange foreign currency at a new, more advantageous rate in bolivars in order to boost cash flow and speed up projects, a high-level PDVSA source said on Tuesday. The companies, participating in joint ventures in various fields around Venezuela, can now buy local currency at the Simadi rate, currently averaging 172 bolivars per dollar, compared to far more disadvantageous rates used in the past. “This will increase the bolivars they have for capital expenditure and operational expenditure. It is a huge incentive and drastically affects cash flow,” the PDVSA source, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter, told Reuters. “Partners who have been skeptical will now be encouraged to speed up,” the source said. State-owned oil and natural gas company PDVSA’s foreign partners have long cited as […]