Russia's oil and gas bosses, almost all of them educated in Soviet engineering and oil-drilling schools, resented foreigners.

ECONOMIST: Russian energy

Few have the background in oil and gas engineering to help Petrobras expand its operations in deep sea drilling off the Atlantic.

FORBES: Brazil's Strengthening Currency Poses Competition Problem

Banks won't lend the money until much more drilling is done, serious engineering work is completed and a feasibility study is presented sometime in 2004 that shows how much copper and gold can be mined at a profit.

FORBES: Companies & Strategies