Venezuela's state-run petroleum firm PDVSA declared on Friday it would invest 16.78 billion US dollars from 2006 to 2012 to boost its natural gas production.

According to the plan, Venezuela's annual natural gas output will be increased from the current 6.3 billion cubic feet to 11.5 billion cubic feet by 2012.

The company added that the project will also see to the connection of natural gas pipelines in the west and east in 2007 to further boost the whole country's natural gas production.

Venezuela has proven reserves of 148 billion cubic feet of natural gas, the eighth largest in the world, accounting for 2.4 percent of the world's total.

Source: Xinhua