(Ford Tanner, 23.Jul.2019) — Venezuela’s political crisis remains in stalemate. Escalating oil-sector sanctions imposed by the United States have contributed to massive declines in crude oil production, but the collapse of Venezuela’s petroleum industry has not resulted in a political shift. President Nicolás Maduro appears to maintain full control of […]
Category: Venezuela
Venezuela energy
Venezuela Govt Says Blackouts Caused By ‘Electromagnetic Attack’
(Reuters, 22.Jul.2019) — More than half of Venezuela’s 23 states lost power on Monday, according to Reuters witnesses and reports on social media, a blackout the government blamed on an “electromagnetic attack.” It was the first blackout to include the capital, Caracas, since March, when the government blamed the opposition […]
Fallout From Sweet Oil Deal For Venezuela’s Neighbors
(NPR, 20.Jul.2019) — It sounded like such a good idea at the time. The year was 2005. Global oil prices were climbing dramatically. Countries in the Caribbean were facing major fuel shortages. Venezuela, one of the world’s largest producers of crude, offered to ease the staggering fuel costs faced by […]
PDVSA Partly Restarts Amuay After Blackout
(Reuters, 18.Jul.2019) — Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA partly restarted activity at its 645,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) Amuay refinery where a blackout halted operations in early Jul., four sources with knowledge of the matter said, though it remained well below capacity. The refinery’s catalytic cracker restarted and was processing 68,000 bpd, […]
Sanctions Squeeze Venezuela’s EHCO Output
(Petroleum Economist, 18.Jul.2019) — Latin America’s economically troubled oil giant faces the difficult task of significantly raising Asian crude grades. Venezuela’s upgraders have been forced to stop upgrading extra-heavy crude and instead focus on blending light and heavy grades, as US sanctions limit exports of the South American country’s most […]
PdV To Tap Fractionator To Replace Imported Naphtha
(Argus, 9.Jul.2019) — Venezuela’s national oil company PdV is seeking to adapt its infrastructure to cope with a shortage of imported naphtha that is hindering heavy crude production and exports. The company said it plans to build two small pipelines at its Jose industrial complex to supply its 210,000 b/d […]
Venezuela’s CRP Shuts Down After Blackout
(Oilprice.com, Irina Slav, 8.Jul.2019) — Venezuela’s refining complex CRP has been shut down after a blackout that occurred on Sunday, Argus Media reports, citing union officials from the complex as saying the blackout was caused by a “catastrophic failure” in a turbine at the power plant that supplies electricity to […]
PDVSA to Restart CRP Refining by 10 Jul. 2019
(Argus, 8.Jul.2019) — Venezuela´s state-owned PdV plans to restart crude processing at the 940,000 b/d CRP refining complex by 10 July after electricity supply was restored on the Paraguana peninsula, the oil ministry said. The oil ministry said the CRP complex remained off line as of 6pm ET today, but […]
Venezuela To Blend Oil To Keep Exports Afloat: OilMin
(Reuters, 2.Jul.2019) — Venezuela will stick to its plan of blending domestic and foreign crude to maintain and even increase oil production and exports in the face of sanctions prohibiting U.S. companies from buying the country’s oil, oil minister Manuel Quevedo said on Tuesday. State-run oil company PDVSA in June […]
Chevron Seeks Relief From Trump’s Venezuela Oil Sanctions
(Bloomberg, Fabiola Zerpa, Peter Millard and Kevin Crowley, 2.Jul.2019) — Chevron Corp. is lobbying the U.S. for sanctions relief so it can continue doing business in oil-rich Venezuela where President Donald Trump has been pushing for regime change. Chevron executives have been telling local staff that the company expects waivers […]
Venezuela Reshifts Oil Output
(Reuters, Marianna Parraga and Luc Cohen, 28.Jun.2019) — Venezuelan state oil firm PDVSA is revamping one of its major processing operations geared to supplying U.S. buyers to produce instead a crude grade favored by Asian refiners, according to internal documents seen by Reuters. Sweeping U.S. sanctions on the government of […]
Colombia’s Iván Duque On Climate Change, Venezuela
(NBC, Claire Atkinson, 27.Jun.2019) — Advertising can help combat climate change, says Colombia’s president, Iván Duque, who recently spoke at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity about the significance of the orange economy — as the cultural and creative industries are known. In a brief conversation with NBCNews.com, Duque […]
Court To Decide Fight For Control Of US Refiner Citgo
(Reuters, 26.Jun.2019) — A U.S. court will decide whether a board of directors appointed by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro or one backed by his rival, opposition leader Juan Guaido, runs the eighth-largest U.S. refiner, Citgo Petroleum Corp. A lawsuit filed by Maduro’s representatives on Tuesday in Delaware Chancery Court seeks […]
LatAmNRG Heard On The Street: Gas Markets, Argentina Tender
(Energy Analytics Institute, Aaron Simonsky and Ian Silverman, 25.Jun.2019) — Heard on the street related to the Latin America and Caribbean upstream, midstream, downstream and renewable energies sectors. ARGENTINA — During the first half of July a tender will be launched in Argentina for the construction of a new natural […]
Opinion: Two Decades Of 21st Century Socialism In Venezuela
(Energy Analytics Institute, Pietro D. Pitts, 22.Jun.2019) — New data from BP’s Statistical Review of World Energy (2019) provides two 10-year periods of study, which reveal the two-decade collapse of Venezuela’s once all mighty oil sector under Chavez-Maduro. Simply, P1 reserves rose 76%, oil production fell 53%, and Venezuela’s R/P […]
US Seeks Info From Guaido’s Ad-hoc Citgo Board
(Reuters, 19.Jun.2019) — An ad-hoc board of directors for U.S. oil refiner Citgo, named by Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, said on Wednesday it has received a request for information from U.S. officials, who are probing its parent company PDVSA for alleged corruption. The board was named by Guaido, also […]
Fuel Crisis Denting PdV Upstream Operations
(Argus, 18.Jun.2019) — Venezuela’s severe motor fuel deficit is starting to weigh on the Opec country’s crude production, as oil workers struggle to reach their jobs, and oil equipment and supplies fail to reach oil fields. The fuel crisis could push output below the May average of around 750,000 b/d, […]
Canada’s Gulf Coast Exports Up As Venezuela Gap Filled
(Reuters, Collin Eaton, 18.Jun.2019) — Heavy crudes have poured into the United States this spring, offsetting the loss of Venezuelan oil and producing a mini-surplus, with Canadian heavy crude this month being exported from the U.S. Gulf Coast. U.S. refiners have lined up larger supplies from Canada, Iraq and Colombia […]
Ad Hoc PDVSA Board Suggest Jamaica Suspending Petrojam Takeover
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 16.Jun.2019) — The ad hoc administrative board of Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) appointed by interim Venezuelan president Juan Guaidó requested that the government of Jamaica suspend the “illegal expropriation” of the shares of PDVSA Caribe in Petrojam, approved by the Jamaican parliament in February 2019, […]
Trinidad Moves Past Venezuela To Tap Border Gas
(Argus, 11.Jun.2019) — Trinidad and Tobago has cleared Shell to develop the country’s side of a shallow-water natural gas field that straddles the maritime border with Venezuela, prime minister Keith Rowley said. The move indicates Trinidad’s “impatience” with Venezuela’s delay in agreeing on the development of the Loran-Manatee field that […]
Haitians Decry Squandered Venezuelan Oil Funds
(Argus, 11.Jun.2019) — Deadly street protests have erupted in Haiti following the publication of a court report alleging that recent governments mishandled about $2bn in oil-related credit from Venezuela. Seven people have been killed and many injured since 9 June as security forces attacked protesters, according to opposition groups that […]
Trinidad Moves Past Venezuela To Tap Border Gas
(Argus, 11.Jun.2019) — Trinidad and Tobago has cleared Shell to develop the country’s side of a shallow-water natural gas field that straddles the maritime border with Venezuela, prime minister Keith Rowley said. The move indicates Trinidad’s “impatience” with Venezuela’s delay in agreeing on the development of the Loran-Manatee field that […]
Fire Near PdV’s PLC Refinery Kills Three
(Argus, 9.Jun.2019) — A fire yesterday near state-owned PdV’s 190,000 b/d Puerto La Cruz refinery killed at least three people. Civil emergency and Anzoategui state firefighting officials blamed the fire on an electricity transmission cable that fell into a crude waste storage pond after an exploding transformer cut the cable. […]
U.S. Tightens Venezuela Oil Sanctions, Indicates More Actions To Come
(Reuters, Roberta Rampton, 6.Jun.2019) — The U.S. Treasury Department on Thursday tightened its pressure on Venezuela’s state-owned oil company by making clear that exports of diluents by international shippers could be subject to U.S. sanctions. The change, announced on the Treasury Department’s website, is the latest U.S. measure aimed at […]
Citgo’s Search For CEO Moves Forward, Includes Former PDVSA Executives
(Reuters, Marianna Parraga, 6.Jun.2019) — Citgo Petroleum Corp, the U.S. arm of Venezuela’s state-run oil firm PDVSA, is moving toward appointing a new chief executive, with candidate names including former executives from PDVSA and other companies soon to be submitted to the board. In February, former CEO Asdrubal Chavez and […]
Tempers Flare As Cash Starved Venezuela Starts To Ration Petrol At The Pumps
(AFP, 5.Jun.2019 ) — Maria Lopez complains about gasoline rationing that Venezuela — home to the world’s largest oil reserves — has started introducing in some areas to tackle extreme fuel shortages. “It’s a joke,” Lopez said. But for ordinary Venezuelans, it is a cruel joke without a punchline — […]
Venezuela Crude Oil Exports Sink In May
(Oilprice.com, Julianne Geiger, 5.Jun.2019) — Venezuela’s oil exports slumped in May as the sanctions levied by the United States staunched the flow of oil from the troubled Latin American country that is in the middle of a severe crisis, according to Refinitive Eikon data. Venezuela’s oil exports fell 17% in […]
Tanker Sabotage: Venezuela’s Crisis Worsens
(Oilprice.com, Tsvetana Paraskova, 28.May.2019) — Tankers carrying gasoline and ships transporting food for Venezuela were sabotaged last week to prevent them from reaching Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro said in a televised speech late on Monday. “Last week, sabotage was committed against ten tankers [with gasoline] to prevent them from reaching the […]
Why Venezuela, The Country With The World’s Largest Oil Reserves Its Short Of Petrol
(CNN, Stefano Pozzebon, 26.May.2019) — For many Venezuelans, oil is a birthright in the country blessed with the largest crude reserves in the world. Despite wild hyperinflation, Venezuela’s government has never increased the price of gasoline. Today, amid a crushing economic crisis, filling up a tank in Venezuela is still […]
LatAmNRG Q&A With ANH Colombia: Exploratory Drilling To Start In 2H:20
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 24.May.2019) — As part of Energy Analytics Institute’s ongoing coverage of the Latin America and Caribbean energy sectors from conventionals, unconventionals to renewables, Colombia’s Hydrocarbons National Agency (ANH) weighs in on some of our Colombia-related questions. What follows are excerpts from our series: LatAmNRG Q&A […]
Venezuelan Petroleum Exports To Cuba Surge In Response To US Sanctions
(Platts, 23.May.2019) — Venezuela has increased oil supplies to ally Cuba in May four-fold as US sanctions severely limit exports to other countries, PDVSA documents show. According to the documents, seen by S&P Global Platts Thursday, state-owned PDVSA exported 1.416 million barrels of combined crude and products in May to […]
Colombia’s Ecopetrol Says Exports To U.S. Up On Venezuela, Higher Output
(Reuters, 22.May.2019) — Colombia’s state-run oil company Ecopetrol said on Wednesday its crude exports to the United States rose nearly 25% in the first quarter because of lower supply from neighboring Venezuela and higher production. The 4-week average for crude imports from Colombia have surged to near the highest levels […]
Repsol Winds Down Operations In Venezuela
(VOA, Martin Arostegui, 21.May.2019) — Spain’s Repsol, the last western oil giant with major operations in Venezuela, is leaving the embattled country, as pressure mounts from U.S. sanctions and continuing unrest. Repsol’s investments in Venezuela, valued at nearly $1.7 billion (1,480 billion euros) in 2017, have fallen 70% over the […]
OPEC Founder Venezuela Pumps Less Oil Than Three Of Its Neighbors
(Bloomberg, Lucia Kassai, 20.May.2019) —Venezuela, which sits atop more oil than Saudi Arabia, has fallen behind three other Latin American countries as years of mismanagement and lack of investments take its toll. The OPEC founding member produced 740,000 barrels a day in March, while Colombia’s oil reserves are less than […]
Russian Oil Sales To U.S. ‘On Steroids’ Amid Venezuela Sanctions
(Bloomberg, Sheela Tobben, 20.May.2019) — Petroleum exports from Russia to the U.S. are growing rapidly as the supplier takes advantage of lost deliveries from sanctions-hit Venezuela and supply cuts by OPEC members. In the first half of May, 13 ships from Russia delivered almost 5 million barrels of crude and […]
Venezuela’s Opposition Hires Debt Adviser
(Argus, 20.May.2019) — Venezuela’s political opposition contracted with an international adviser to prepare for restructuring the country’s external debt that is expected to exceed $150bn. Lee Buchheit, a specialist in sovereign debt restructuring, will assist the self-proclaimed interim government of Juan Guaido, the head of Venezuela´s opposition-controlled National Assembly who […]
US Sanctions Mining Company Backing Maduro
(Reuters, 19.May.2019) — The United States imposed sanctions on Tuesday against Venezuela’s state-run gold mining company Minerven and its president, Adrian Perdomo, accusing them of illicit operations and propping up the government of President Nicolas Maduro. The announcement comes days after Uganda said it was investigating its biggest gold refinery […]
Without Venezuela’s Oil, Haiti Struggles To Keep Lights On
(AP, Ralph Thomassaint Joseph, 17.May.2019) — When her daughter was 4 years old, Jennifer Jean started a small catering business in Bourdon, a lower middle-class district of the Haitian capital. Starting with the occasional wedding or corporate meeting, she grew the business into a venture that earned her as much […]
US Targets Shippers For Bringing Venezuela Oil To Cuba
(AFP, 17.May.2019) — The United States last Friday imposed sanctions on two shipping companies for delivering Venezuelan oil to ally Cuba in what it called a response to actions against opposition lawmakers in Caracas. The Treasury Department said it was taking aim at the Monsoon Navigation Corp, headquartered in the […]
Gas Station Lines Reappear In Venezuela As Refinery Halts, Fuel Imports Plunge
(Reuters, Mircely Guanipa and Marianna Parraga, 16.May.2019) — Gas station lines reappeared across oil-rich but crisis-stricken Venezuela this week as gasoline imports plunged and the country’s second-largest oil refinery halted operations. Shortages of motor fuel have become a periodic occurrence across OPEC member Venezuela, particularly in border regions where smuggling […]
Who Gets Venezuela’s Oil?
(CNN, Allan Dodds Frank, 16.May.2019) — Venezuela’s future is in limbo, as its embattled president continues to fend off a national movement for regime change. And whether President Nicolas Maduro consolidates his power, or opposition leader Juan Guaido takes control of the government, one longterm question hangs over the country’s […]
Venezuela’s Ad-Hoc PDVSA Board Begins Payment On Citgo-Backed 2020 Bond
(Reuters, Corina Pons and Mayela Armas, 16.May.2019) — Venezuela’s ad-hoc board of directors for state oil company PDVSA, appointed by opposition leader Juan Guaido, said on Thursday it has made an interest payment on its bond maturing in 2020, delaying uncertainty over its crown jewel U.S. asset. The PDVSA bond […]
Rising U.S. Oil Output Helps Fill Gap Left By Iran, Venezuela: IEA
(Reuters, Noah Browning, 15.May.2019) — The world will require very little extra oil from OPEC this year as booming U.S. output will offset falling exports from Iran and Venezuela, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday. The IEA, which coordinates the energy policies of industrial nations, said Washington’s decision to […]
LatAmNRG Briefs: OPEC MOMR, EP PetroEcuador Import Awards
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 14.May.2019) — Heard on the street and LatAmNRG briefs related to OPEC’s Monthly Oil Market Report, EP PetroEcuador awards Trafigura deal to import 2,750,000 barrels of premium diesel, and EP PetroEcuador’s plans to open envelopes related to an award to import 2,250,000 barrels of diesel […]
Contrasting Cases Of Energy Dependence: Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago
(NACLA, Zophia Edwards and Timothy M. Gill, 14.May.2019) — Trinidad and Tobago used to be as dependent on oil as Venezuela. So why hasn’t its economy suffered similar levels of crisis since oil prices began to decline? Away from the economic and political calamity in Venezuela, just seven miles off […]
Venezuelan Oil Output Sinks To 500,000 B/D
(Argus, 14.May.2019) — Venezuela’s crude production has dropped to around 500,000 b/d as sluggish export loadings and replete storage force state-owned PdV to shut in wells, four company officials tell Argus. The decline is most pronounced in the Orinoco heavy oil belt, where production has dwindled to less than 200,000 […]
Pompeo, Putin Could Decide Venezuela’s Fate
(Oilprice.com, Tsvetana Paraskova, 14.May.2019) — U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Russian President Vladimir Putin are meeting on Tuesday to discuss various issues, including the fate of Venezuela and Nicolas Maduro—a hot topic for the oil market as geopolitical tensions have mounted in recent weeks. Secretary Pompeo will be […]
Readout Of Secretary Perry’s Visit To Bogota, Colombia
(Energy.gov, 13.May.2019) — Today, U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry was in Bogotá, Colombia for the Concordia Americas Summit, a gathering of government and private sector leaders held to discuss a range of issues impacting Colombia and the broader Latin American region. Secretary Perry addressed the Summit about the desire […]
Could Emerging Oil State Guyana Become The Richest Nation In The World?
(Oilprice.com, Irina Slav, 12.May.2019) — A tiny South American country until recently known mostly as the location of one of the worst mass suicides in modern history is about to acquire a whole new reputation, and this reputation has to do with its oil wealth. Guyana, sandwiched between Venezuela and […]
PDVSA’s Oil Exports Steady In April, Flow To Cuba Continues
(Reuters, Marianna Parraga, 3.May.2019) — Venezuela’s state-run PDVSA exported 1.06 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude and refined products last month, an eight percent increase from March as the sanctioned company managed to boost shipments to China, according to Refinitiv Eikon data. The U.S. government imposed the toughest sanctions […]