An auction for the rights to develop Venezuela's 14.7 trillion cubic foot Mariscal Sucre natural gas project ended Friday night without a single bidder, even after terms were improved.

Perhaps it had something to do with all the recent expropriations of private companies' assets by the Chavez regime.

Reuters: The government this month improved the conditions it was offering companies to help develop the project, but in the end nobody came forward, private sector sources close to the process said on Monday.

State oil company PDVSA has yet to announce the results.

Last year PDVSA invited a group of companies including Japan's Marubeni (8002.T), Mitsui, Mitsubishi and Itochu, Norway's Statoil (STL.OL), Russia's Gazprom and Italy's ENI (ENI.MI) to consider taking part in the project. Spain's Repsol (REP.MC) had also shown interest but did not make an offer.

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