Venezuela has authorised a US$378m payment for two European cement companies that have been waiting nearly a year for compensation after their local assets were nationalised, President Hugo Chavez’s government said Thursday.
 
Holcim Ltd and Lafarge SA will initially receive 40 per cent of the agreed-upon purchase price for their local affiliates, Infrastructure Minister Diosdado Cabello told state-run Bolivarian News Agency.
 
He said the government will pay the rest over four years, without interest. The report did not say when the initial payment would be made.