Three Oil Producers: Three Ways of Life

May 24, 2006 — -- Saudi Arabia, Norway and Venezuela are three of the world's most prolific oil producers, but each has very different ways of spending an oil fortune.

Saudi Arabia has the world's largest oil reserves. The latest oil boom allows the Saudis to live in luxury, surrounded by soaring skyscrapers and fashionable Western-style bars.

The Saudi government controls 100 percent of the oil. But, as the population balloons and the country shows the first signs of poverty in recent years, Saudi leaders are promising to share the wealth as never before.

Gasoline was cut to 61 cents a gallon. There is a new national fund for the poor, and teachers have been promised new schools.

Venezuela has some of the richest reserves in the Western Hemisphere and leftist President Hugo Chavez is buying influence abroad and at home. He has been giving an outpouring to his strongest supporters, the poor. ABC News visited socialist-style cooperatives that supply jobs, cheap groceries and free health care.

At gas stations in Venezuela, gas is the cheapest thing for sale. Bottled water costs 15 times as much as gasoline, which costs 11 cents a gallon.

Norway is the world's third-largest exporter and has quietly become the richest country in the world. Per capita, Norwegians are 25 percent richer than American, all because of vast oil fields in the icy waters of the North Sea.

Norway is saving nearly all its oil wealth by taxing oil profits by 78 percent to build a huge national savings account for when the oil dries up.

Even gasoline is heavily taxed. It costs $7.30 a gallon -- the world's most expensive price.

This story was reported by ABC News' Jim Sciutto