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Professor of Law David Victor writes an Op-Ed for Newsweek describing the issues surrounding state-run gas industries and focuses on Mexico's Pemex in particular. Some choice quotations:
"Mexico is hardly the only country that treats its state oil companies as ATMs for governments, unions, cronies and others who siphon the rich benefits for themselves."
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"Used as a cash cow for the government, Pemex has never been able to keep enough of its profits to invest in exploration and better technology, the lifeblood of the best oil companies."
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"Pemex's ability to control its own investment capital is probably more important to its success than anything else. The firm, though, has been hobbled because the government keeps all profits for use in the federal budget and the finance ministry has the final word on all Pemex investments."