BBC News UK (Will Grant): On the shores of Latin America's largest lake lies Ciudad Ojeda, a town dedicated to oil. Almost everyone here works in the industry, either directly as contract workers or because their restaurants, bars and other small businesses rely on the free-spending oil workers to stay afloat. Last month, a significant change happened in Ojeda. Dozens of those contractor businesses were expropriated, along with their assets.

• Overnight, 300 boats and an estimated 8,000 workers passed into government hands.

No wages
There were scenes of jubilation as President Hugo Chavez came to the dockside by Lake Maracaibo to meet the newly-nationalized oil workers. They waved red flags and celebrated their addition to the payroll of the state-run energy company, PDVSA.

A few weeks later, and those celebrations have turned to protests.  In the central square of Ciudad Ojeda, a noisy demonstration of about 100 workers is held in the stifling mid-morning heat. Some say they lost their jobs during the nationalization, others that their pay has been frozen. "I haven't been paid for more than two months now," says young father-of-four Jose Cardoso.  "There's no food at home and we're getting desperate," he says, adding that he would be willing to go to prison over his outstanding wages.

Debts or savings?
At the time of the nationalizations, President Chavez said the move represented a $700 million saving for the Venezuelan government. More importantly, he said, all the different parts of oil production in western Venezuela were now in the hands of the Venezuelan people.  But for some analysts, there is an inherent danger in taking the work of specialist contractor companies out of private hands and putting it under the wide-reaching umbrella of PDVSA.

"First off, [President Chavez] owes that money, so I don't know how he can count it as a saving," says former Shell executive Alberto Quiroz. "Those are services rendered and he has to pay for them, sooner or later. Secondly, he claims that PDVSA can perform the same services cheaper than the specialist companies. Well, that's open to discussion. Personally, I think it will end up being more expensive."

Near standstill
Mr Quiroz believes the nationalization process has created inefficiency in the oil industry, which is being most keenly felt in Ciudad Ojeda. There are almost daily reports in the newspapers -- many of which are firmly opposed to Mr Chavez - of the nationalised tug-boats lying idle in the dock and falling into disrepair.  Such claims are difficult to prove as the military are guarding the nationalised companies and access is difficult. But one business owner, who has spent more than 25 years in the oil industry in Ojeda, is convinced things have slowed down to a near standstill since May.

"Normally you'd expect to see 30, 40 boats working out on the lake at any one time," says Juan Lacor