Venezuela’s dwindling fuel compounds virus risk

Venezuela's scarce motor fuel is now drying up altogether, leaving the country even more vulnerable to catastrophe caused by the silently spreading coronavirus.

Although some medical aid is arriving from China and a few international organizations, the fuel shortage as well as roadblocks are hampering distribution.

The armed forces have begun to fan out at the few service stations that still have fuel in their small tanks to ensure that supply is dispensed only for food distribution, medical services and security-related activities, an aide to defense minister Vladimir Padrino said.

"There is no gasoline," an army officer assigned to domestic intelligence assessments tells Argus . "The only gasoline PdV still has is stored in the tanks of its service stations, and after that's gone, it's zero until more imported gasoline arrives."

Venezuela's state-owned PdV and the oil ministry pledged that gasoline imports would arrive soon, without providing further details.

PdV controls all fuel imports and distribution, and supply has fallen short of demand for years, in part because of chronic smuggling and free transfers to political ally Cuba. Venezuelan pump prices are close to zero in real terms.

When the Venezuelan market was balanced and the economy was on a more solid footing, the country consumed about 700,000 b/d of oil products.

PdV's 1.3mn b/d of domestic refining capacity is nearly all broken, so in recent years, almost all supply has come from swaps and debt-related agreements that are still permitted under US oil sanctions imposed in January 2019.

The acute fuel shortage was aggravated yesterday by a fire on a corroded gasoline pipeline at the Bajo Grande terminal near Maracaibo.

The lack of fuel makes it difficult if not impossible for the Venezuelan government to distribute limited food and medicine, and to transport the sick to poorly equipped hospitals.

Critics dismissed the efficacy of military control over service stations.

"President Maduro declared that gasoline supply is guaranteed for essential services, but trucks cannot move because they are being denied gasoline and General Padrino is arbitrarily blocking vehicle movement between cities and shutting down circulation between municipalities in cities like Caracas," a strategic planning official at the ministry said.

Looting has already broken out in Maracaibo and other cities.

The official predicted clashes over food between the military, police, criminals and paramilitaries. "The government could lose control of the situation very rapidly as more people sicken and food shortages worsen."

The health ministry in Caracas said there are 48 confirmed cases as of this morning, up from 36 yesterday, mostly in Caracas. But Venezuela, more than the rest of Latin America , is woefully ill-prepared to test or treat patients.

The US-backed political opposition, led by Western-recognized interim president Juan Guaido, is exploring ways to channel in food, medicine and potable water independently of the US-sanctioned government of President Nicolas Maduro, through Colombia or by sea. But the lack of fuel, border closures and internal distribution barriers are significant obstacles. A February 2019 opposition aid campaign fell flat.

The Maduro government said today that more Chinese aid is en route to Venezuela. And the government is in talks with the World Health Organization (WHO) to coordinate further medical help.

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