Venezuela sanctions spotlight
Overview
US sanctions on Venezuela’s national oil company PdV, first imposed on 28 January 2019, cast another layer of geopolitical uncertainty onto the international oil market. The sanctions take effect in stages, gradually intensifying their impact on the Opec country’s imports and exports.
For international oil companies, traders and governments around the world, the sanctions rollout and partial unwinding of commercial ties will help to shape near-term market dynamics, with longer-term implications for energy policy and investment.
Follow along with Argus as we deliver the latest news and market analysis on this fast-developing story.
Timeline: Key Venezuela sanctions dates
Related news and analysis
Venezuela opposition leader held, Gonzalez warned
Venezuela opposition leader held, Gonzalez warned
Caracas, 9 January (Argus) — Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was detained for several hours today after leaving a rally to protest President Nicolas Maduro's disputed swearing-in on Friday, her allies said. Machado and her party members hold that their candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez, won a July presidential election, a claim supported by the US and many Latin American and other countries. The US kept in place broad sanctions against Venezuela's crude and energy industry in the wake of the contested election. Multiple black SUVs intercepted Machado while she traveled on motorcycle after the rally and forcibly took her while drones circled overhead, her allies confirmed. She was later released, they said, but she had not made a public appearance as of late Thursday afternoon. The Maduro government did not confirm Machado's detention. US representative Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Florida) vowed a response. "Our message to the Maduro regime is clear: If you attack Maria Corina Machado, we, the United States, will attack you", Salazar posted on social media. Venezuelan interior minister Diosdado Cabello has in turn threatened to "neutralize" any aircraft in national airspace carrying Gonzalez, who has said he will try to enter Venezuela on Friday to take the oath of office instead of Maduro. Gonzalez has been visiting multiple leaders in the region in the run-up to Maduro's ceremony, meeting with US president Joe Biden and president-elect Donald Trump's designated White House national security adviser Mike Waltz in Washington earlier this week. He has most recently visited the Dominican Republic and met with President Luis Abinader and other dignitaries there. Sources in Caracas say low turnout at pro-Maduro counter demonstrations today may have triggered the decision to arrest Machado. Trump's advisers have not disclosed whether they plan to tighten the US' sanctions against Venezuela, including whether they would remove exemptions allowing Chevron, Eni and Repsol to lift cargoes of oil produced in their joint ventures with state-owned PdV. Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman Jim Risch (R-Idaho) unveiled a bill today that would condition a future removal of sanctions against Venezuela on the establishment of a democratically elected government in Caracas. But the bill, which enjoys backing of key Democrats on his committee, does not directly address Chevron's upstream exemption. By Carlos Camacho and Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US extends oil service firms' Venezuela waiver
US extends oil service firms' Venezuela waiver
Washington, 7 November (Argus) — The outgoing administration of US president Joe Biden extended authorization for oilfield services companies Halliburton, SLB, Baker Hughes and Weatherford to continue working in Venezuela until 9 May 2025. The waiver allows the service companies to pay their staff and maintain limited operations, but it prevents them from drilling new wells or otherwise contributing to state-owned PdV's production and exports. The Biden administration reimposed sanctions on Venezuela's oil sector in April, after a six-month reprieve. The sole exemption is a waiver for Chevron allowing it to import oil into the US from its joint venture with state-owned PdV. US crude imports from Venezuela averaged 212,000 b/d in January-August, US Energy Information Administration data show. Chevron's Venezuela output has stood at about 200,000 b/d. Neither president-elect Donald Trump nor his campaign addressed the Venezuela sanctions regime or indicated if they would change it. Republicans in Congress ahead of the election called for the Chevron exemption to be revoked. The Biden administration separately extended a prohibition for holders of $3.4bn in PdV 2020 bonds guaranteed by 50.1pc in US refiner Citgo's holding company to exercise their claim, this time until 7 March 2025. The PdV bondholders in theory hold a superior claim to Citgo Holding — a legal entity that directly owns Citgo and, in turn, is owned by Citgo parent company PdVH. A federal court in Delaware recently oversaw an auction of PdVH shares that yielded a $7.3bn bid from a company backed by investors including Elliott Investment Management. Legal wrangling over the bids and the distribution of auction proceeds is likely to keep Citgo ownership unresolved in the near term. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US attorneys cast light on Venezuela oil trade
US attorneys cast light on Venezuela oil trade
Washington, 5 November (Argus) — The next US president will have to decide how to continue to apply economic penalties against oil-producing countries such as Russia, Iran and Venezuela — but the sanctions regime is hardly a barrier for some determined sellers and buyers. A US federal indictment, unveiled on Monday, accused Turkish national Taskin Torlak of trading Venezuelan oil in 2020-23 despite US sanctions against Caracas. Torlak allegedly relied on individuals and companies operating in Ukraine, China, Turkey, Russia and other countries to access US banks, insurers and freight companies to transport Venezuelan oil to China. US sanctions cut off Venezuela from the US financial system under the threat of economic and criminal penalties. Torlak's methods included re-naming and re-flagging oil tankers, covering tanker names with paint or blankets, and turning off the AIS transponders and obtaining fake bills of lading, according to the US criminal indictment. Venezuela state-owned PdV allegedly paid tens of millions of dollars to Torlak to facilitate shipment of oil. But the US indictment also cites frequent complaints from Torlak about PdV's arrears for such services. "We would like to emphasize our satisfaction in operating our fleet under the commercial interest serving the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and [PdV] for nearly 2.5 years, with strong technical management and continuous validation from charterers", an associate of Torlak wrote to PdV in July 2023 to complain that the Venezuelan company was late in making a $32.5mn payment. President Joe Biden's administration lifted sanctions against PdV in October 2023, only to reimpose them six months later as Caracas reneged on its promise to hold a free and fair presidential election. The US backs the Venezuelan opposition's claim that its candidate Edmundo Gonzalez defeated incumbent president Nicolas Maduro in July. But Washington has backed away from adding more sanctions against Venezuela. Most Venezuelan crude heads to China, where many independent refiners rely on networks such as Torlak's alleged organization to access discounted crude from countries under US sanctions. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Ex-PdV head quits Venezuela ministry, Saab in
Ex-PdV head quits Venezuela ministry, Saab in
Caracas, 18 October (Argus) — Venezuela's former head of state-owned PdV and oil minister Pedro Tellechea resigned from his recent post as industries minister, with former US prisoner Alex Saab taking his place. Tellechea stepped down from his two roles in late August to be replaced by Venezuelan vice president Delcy Rodriguez as part of a broader cabinet reshuffle after a contested 28 July presidential election. He announced his departure today on X, formerly Twitter, a social media platform recently banned in Venezuela but accessible through virtual private networks. He attribute his leaving to health problems. Saab, appointed almost immediately after Tellechea said he was leaving, is a Colombian-Venezuelan businessman freed last year by the US administration in a prisoner swap. He spent three years in US and African jails awaiting trial on money-laundering charges. Several of Tellechea's colleagues in top military and law enforcement posts were sacked by Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro this week also, including the head of the presidential security detail Ivan Hernandez, sources told Argus . Tellechea is a former colonel in the Venezuelan army and an engineer. He took over at PdV in January 2023, in the wake of an investigation into an alleged $23bn in missing cryptocurrency funds, and became energy minister two months later. His predecessor in that role, Tareck El Aissami, was jailed in the cryptocurrency case. By Carlos Camacho Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Map: Primary Venezuelan oil assets
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