[China-Venezuela Joint Fund] Chinese financing for dredging the Rio Orinoco Canal [Linked to Record ID#37808 and #37804]

[China-Venezuela Joint Fund] Chinese financing for dredging the Rio Orinoco Canal The dredging project of the Orinoco river navigation channel, on the stretch between Ciudad Guayana (Bolívar) and the mouth of the Atlantic Ocean is financed through the long term facility of the China Venezuela Joint Fund (captured in #37808 and #37804) with an amount of 161.5 million USD.

The dredging of the Orinoco navigation channel is a project approved in 2011as part of the plan for the recovery of the productive capacity and dispatch of state-owned iron ore and ferrosiderurgic products.

The goal of the project is to return to the canal a level of depth similar to the one it had at the time of being put into service in the mid-20th century for the departure of ships loaded with iron ore, steel and other products made in the basic companies located in Ciudad Guayana , Bolivar state.

This operating depth is 34 feet minimum in the inner section of the channel and 44 feet maximum in its outer section, which ensures the safety of vessels that use this channel throughout the year, regardless of the level of descent or increase of the river level due to the rains.

The resources allocated to this project also include the acquisition of hydrographic vessels and buoy placement, as well as the installation along the canal of a new Navigation Aid System.

The China-Venezuela Joint Fund receives contributions from China Development Bank and FONDEN, and it is administered by BANDES. See Record ID#58677 for more information on the fund.