(Argus, 10.Dec.2021) — Venezuela’s oil minister Tareck El Aissami returned to work this week after a prolonged medical leave and will not be replaced, a senior source close to the government told Argus.
A second source confirmed the information.
The minister attended meetings in person in Caracas this week and will resume tours of industry installations on 13 December with a refinery visit, Argus has learned.
El Aissami’s longer-than-expected recovery from a surgical procedure related to a genetic condition had sparked speculation of a replacement at the helm of the strategic post, either with executive vice president Delcy Rodriguez or the chief executive of national oil company PdV Asdrubal Chavez.
The apparent stability in the tight circle around President Nicolas Maduro came as a relief to some domestic private-sector executives who are cautiously rebuilding communication with the government with an eye on investment opportunities, including debt-for-equity deals and renewable energy projects. Rodriguez and her team have played a key role in this tentative detente. Much of the business community had been firmly in the camp of the political opposition until this year.
El Aissami and Rodriguez are among the individual targets of US sanctions, and El Aissami in particular is wanted in the US for drug-trafficking.
One of the founding members of Opec, Venezuela has recovered oil production to more than 700,000 b/d, not including gas liquids and water that often pad higher estimates. This is about double the level at the start of 2021, but remains a fraction of the 3mn b/d that Venezuela produced in the 1990s. The recovery is nonetheless seen as reflecting the country’s adaptation to US oil and financial sanctions.
El Aissami is considered a critical link to Iran, which has been supplying Venezuela with condensate this year, allowing PdV to carry out more blending of its extra-heavy Orinoco crude.
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By Patricia Garip
