Venezuela seizes US oil rigs

Venezuela has nationalized a fleet of oil rigs owned by a US-based company which had been shut down in a dispute over payments. In a statement the Venezuelan government said that seizing control of the 11 rigs was the only way to get them restarted after a year of idleness. The move comes as Hugo Chavez, Venezuela's socialist president, pushes ahead with a policy of energy nationalization as he seeks to expand the state's role in the economy. He has also taken over assets in telecommunications, power, steel and banking. The fleet of oil rigs belonging to Oklahoma-based energy firm Helmerich and Payne have been idled for months following a dispute over payments by the Venezuelan state oil company, PDVSA.