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Paris, May 24, 2006 -- EFE
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said he is convinced that within a generation his country will be the world's leading energy power, adding that he has made a commitment to developing alternative fuels such as bio-diesel. In the interview, the Brazilian leader said his country has already achieved oil self-sufficiency and that, within a period of two years, will produce the majority of the natural gas it consumes. He noted that Brazil is the most "competitive" nation in terms of the production of alternative fuels like ethanol and bio-diesel and is developing projects to refine vegetable oil and mix it with petroleum. "Brazil has launched an energy revolution," said Da Silva, who noted that "few countries will be able to compete with us when it comes to extracting the fuels of the future, due to the size of our territory." Regarding the controversy with Bolivia, which recently nationalized its fossil-fuel reserves, Lula said he favored negotiations as a means of overcoming differences: "The Brazilian press wants me to be tough with Bolivia. But if I'm not tough with the European Union and the United States, how can I be with Bolivia, a country that's poorer and more vulnerable than mine?" Asked about leftist-populist Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's public stances, including his opposition to free-trade pacts with the United States, Lula said it was best "not to mix ideology with political and commercial relations. Chavez shouldn't, given that he sells 85 percent of his oil to the United States." EFE jgb/mc News Provided By |
