Colombia Truckers Say Venezuela Border Curfew Will Hurt

Venezuela's nighttime border closure, a move meant to combat smuggling, will be costly, Colombia's transport industry said Sunday.

"This will result in delayed goods shipments, which will generate incalculable losses for owners," the president of the National Chamber of Transport, Ricardo Virviescas, told Colombia's Caracol Radio.

Venezuela announced Saturday it would close its Colombia border at night, it said to combat smuggling of various Venezuelan products, including food and gasoline.

The border closure begins Monday and will take place from 10:00 pm (02:30 GMT) to 5:00 am (09:30 GMT) daily.

"Each vehicle will be prevented from generating a million pesos ($500) per day, on average," Virviescas said.

The vehicles will be "paralyzed" at night, causing "losses due to consumption of fuel, vehicle maintenance, the cost of drivers, hotels and parking lots," Virviescas added.

The Venezuelan government estimates that apart from basic goods, 100,000 barrels of oil -- equivalent to annual losses of $3.7 billion -- are smuggled across its 2,200-kilometer (1,400-mile) border with Colombia.

Venezuela, which has the largest proven oil reserves in the world, sells gas for some of the cheapest prices -- allowing consumers to fill the tank of a car for the equivalent of a candy bar or bottle of water.

The low prices have long led to smuggling of fuel to Colombia, and in the past year, more food and commodities have crossed the border. 

Prices in Colombia can be up to 10 times higher than in Venezuela, which has price controls.