Venezuelans Await Imports as Strike Stalls Gas Industry

Drivers formed mile-long lines at closed gas stations Friday, hoping promised fuel supplies would arrive, as a nationwide strike aimed at toppling President Hugo Chavez forces the world’s fifth-largest oil exporter to import gasoline.

Motorists blocked an avenue in the western part of Caracas, the capital, to demand gasoline, as police watched over the long lines at service stations.

Demonstrators from both sides rallied outside the Supreme Court. Chavez supporters urged justices to ban a proposed referendum on his presidency as illegal. Opponents protested on behalf of merchant marine sailors arrested for joining the strike.

The nearly month-old strike has paralyzed Venezuela’s petroleum industry, which supplies the United States with 14% of its oil. Exports have declined from 3 million barrels a day to a trickle, depriving Venezuela of $50 million a day in revenue.

Along with the fuel crunch, food supplies were running low. Brazil announced Thursday that it would ship 520,000 barrels of gasoline to Venezuela, while the Dominican Republic sent food as a partial payment for oil it has received in the past. Venezuela is also negotiating with Colombia for milk and meat, said Agriculture Minister Efren Andrade.

The Brazilian shipment of oil is not due until today. But the government promised that some domestically produced gas would be delivered Friday.