ARGENTINE shipyard Astillero R? Santiago and its Venezuelan counterpart Dianca have signed an agreement covering repair and construction of Venezuelan vessels at the facility in Ensenada, central Argentina.
The strategic alliance was hammered out at 0200am on 9 September after a week-long visit to Ensenada by Venezuelan engineers and managers.
The PdV Marina tanker Luisa Caceres will arrive for $1.5M worth of repairs in mid-October.
Building specifications for up to six Panamax tankers for the Venezuelan owner for a total of $300M are currently being drawn up.
The yard alliance was accelerated following the unannounced visit to Ensenada of Argentine president N?tor Kirchner and Venezuela's Hugo Ch?ez last July..