Venezuela Reopening
Overview
The lifting of US sanctions on Venezuela has triggered a new flow of Venezuelan crude into the US Gulf. These grades are being sold by merchant traders on a “delivered US Gulf” basis. Oil produced in Venezuela is heavy, sour, and asphalt-rich, and requires specialised refining units, such as cokers, for full processing. US Gulf coast refineries were built for this purpose, and have the appetite to process large volumes of these crudes.
Argus has launched three new price assessments for Venezuelan crude oil to better reflect the new market. Effective Monday, 9 February, Argus assesses Merey, Hamaca, and Boscan, all on a “delivered US Gulf” basis. See key price pages for more details.
Price assessment details
Argus Merey del USGC
While offers have emerged for Venezuelan crudes in India, Asia and Europe, trades for Merey have only been completed in the USGC, where multiple refiners have purchased cargoes of the grade. Transactions have occurred on a delivered USGC basis and against the Ice Brent pricing benchmark, which is widely used to price Latin American grades on the water.
Argus Boscan del USGC and Argus Hamaca del USGC
Due to a current lack of liquidity for these two grades, Argus prices will initially be assessed on the basis of other market information for similar grades in the region, general tendencies in the sour markets around the USGC and quality spreads to Merey, which are widely discussed by market participants and are relatively stable. Should activity for these grades pick up, Argus will also take into consideration any bids, offers and deals that emerge in the spot market to further inform the assessments.
Expectations are that sales will remain concentrated around the USGC on an Ice Brent basis for the foreseeable future. Argus will also publish an equivalent differential for all three Venezuelan grades against the Argus WCS Houston price, given Venezuela crude is a close alternative to Canadian supplies, and more specifically WCS. This WCS basis price will allow for hedging as there are actively traded futures swaps based on the Argus WCS Houston price on both major exchanges. These financial contracts settle on the month average of Argus WCS Houston daily published prices.
Related news and analysis
Venezuela close to issuing oil regulations: Henao
Venezuela close to issuing oil regulations: Henao
Houston, 19 May (Argus) — Venezuela will soon issue rules meant to provide energy investorswith more clarity, hydrocarbons minister Paula Henao said on Tuesday. The national assembly passed a hydrocarbons law reform earlier this year aimed at opening the sector to investment, but it lacks the moredetailed regulations needed to implement many changes. "In coming days, we should publish the regulations … to make all these reforms operational," Henao told a Venezuela E&P conference organized by the American Association of Petroleum Geologists near Houston, Texas. The national assembly will need to publish the regulations in the official gazette for them to take effect. Several different draft versions have circulated among market participants in Venezuela. Key questions remain over how companies will qualify for lower royalty rates, whether Venezuela will submit to international arbitration in case of disputes, and specifics on contract models, market participants said. Henao assured participants that contracts under the new framework would include international arbitration, although the oil reform does not exclude a domestic resolution process for disputes. Henao's visit is one of the first in-person appearances in the US by a Venezuelan oil minister in at least 10 years, based on an Argus estimate. The US seizure of Venezuela's former leader Nicolas Maduro on 3 January and what has essentially become a takeover of its energy exports has renewed investment discussions between the countries. Venezuela still aims to increase its crude production to 1.37mn b/d by December, up from the 1.2mn b/d reported for April . By Carla Bass Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Venezuela lawyers say Citgo value up on war
Venezuela lawyers say Citgo value up on war
Houston, 18 May (Argus) — The value of US refiner Citgo has increased substantially because of the war in Iran, so a court-mandated sale of the refiner should be halted, lawyers for Venezuela said in a filing last week. Venezuela state-owned PdV, the parent company and owner of Citgo, and Venezuela have long argued that the refiner has been undervalued in the auction and have protested a US court's decision last year to pick a $5.9bn bid from Amber Energy, an affiliate of New York hedge fund Elliott Investment Management, as the winner. In the months since a sale hearing in the case, the "value of publicly traded refiners has increased significantly", the lawyers for Venezuela said in a filing released on 14 May in the US District Court for the District of Delaware. Based on the increase in stock price for fellow US independent refiners since August and using a conservative calculation discussed in the court case, Citgo should be valued at $15.1bn, more than double the Amber bid, the filing said. The lawyers for Venezuela also allege that selling Citgo for $5.9bn would constitute a "historic windfall for a hedge fund that has extracted an unconscionable bargain from a conflicted and failed process", according to the court filing. During the court case, lawyers for Citgo and PdV argued that the refiner was worth $18.6bn, which was rejected by US district judge Leonard Stark as "non-credible and unpersuasive." Stark concluded in a 25 November opinion that the fair market value of Citgo was under $10bn. Amber's $5.9bn bid included a separate agreement to settle litigation claims with 75pc of a group of PdV bondholders for $2.13bn. Citgo's three US refineries, as well as its lubricant plants and midstream and retail assets, are being auctioned off to satisfy debt defaults and expropriations owed by PdV. Amber last month urged the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to give a final authorization required for the sale, arguing that it would invest more than $11bn to modernize and expand Citgo's operations which would put "downward pressure on fuel prices", according to a statement on the company's website which was originally published in the opinion section of The Wall Street Journal . The fate of Citgo has been murky since the US ousted former president Nicolas Maduro on 3 January and subsequently lifted sanctions on Venezuela's oil exports. Even though it is owned by PdV, Citgo has operated under a board appointed by the Venezuelan opposition and vetted by the US government since 2019, after the US denounced Venezuela's 2018 presidential election as illegitimate. Since then, the US has recognized the government led by interim president Delcy Rodriguez and restarted diplomatic relations. OFAC last month lifted most restrictions on financial dealings with Venezuela's central bank and other financial institutions, as well as with the government overall. Venezuela's government said last week that it plans to restructure all of its sovereign debt and that of PdV, which could reach up to $160bn. Meanwhile, Citgo reported a profit of $157mn in the first quarter, compared with a loss of $82mn in the first quarter of 2025, pushed by soaring fuel prices because of the war in Iran, which has choked off oil and products supplies through the strait of Hormuz. By Eunice Bridges Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Venezuela hopes to double Cardon IV gas output
Venezuela hopes to double Cardon IV gas output
Caracas, 27 April (Argus) — Venezuela has turned its shorter-term focus to improving natural gas projects as increases in crude output may take more time, industry sources said on Monday. Partners in the gas-rich offshore Cardon IV gas block hope to increase its output soon, joint venture general manager Gonzalo Antonio Carrillo said on Monday at an oil and gas conference organized by the Venezuelan Oil Chamber. Cardon IV currently produces 580mn cf/d, more than 10pc of Venezuela's total production of 4.4 Bcf/d. But doubling production "in the short term" to 659mn cf/d is a key focus, as well as eventually adding facilities to export the production as LNG, Carillo said. Partners Spain's Repsol and Italy's Eni in March renewed a joint venture agreement to manage Cardon IV as equal partners. At the same event, the Venezuelan firm Vepica that partners with Shell said that the two are looking at ways to capture and reinject gas that is being flared in the Punta de Mata region of Monagas state. Venezuela may flare up to half of its production, or roughly 2 Bcf/d, according to industry estimates. Venezuela may hold an estimated 191 Tcf in gas reserves, with 82pc of that associated with crude, a government official said on Monday. Most of its offshore gas is non-associated with lower liquids content. Venezuela needs to develop its gas as well as oil industries, vice minister of gas Cindy Rondon said. "I come from oil, so I have my little oil heart, but we need to realize this [gas] potential," she said. The government has previous discussed 189 Tcf of gas reserves. Its reserves have not been independently audited in several years. Back to crude While US officials have pushed to increase crude production in Venezuela, output is unlikely to go above 1.3mn b/d this year from about 1.1mn b/d now because of the need for more maintenance and investment, sources said. Of Venezuela's 34,000 oil and gas wells, about 23,000 urgently need work, one source with an oil services company said. Only five drilling rigs are working in Venezuela now, the source said, but more are being brought from Colombia. The US has pointed to a gradual recovery in Venezuela, starting with stabilizing the country and ending with democratic elections. The new US charge d'affaires John Barrett in Caracas said on Monday that the "first phase is complete". Other sectors, such as refining, will likely take more time to recover, sources said. Venezuela was producing 108,000 b/d of gasoline and 53,700 b/d of diesel at the end of 2025, PdV executive Vice President Jovanny Martinez said. Venezuela had 1.3mn b/d of nameplate refining capacity at one point, but only 507,000 b/d is usable now and much of that has supply or other issues. By Carlos Camacho Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
IOCs temper Venezuela investment expectations
IOCs temper Venezuela investment expectations
Election timelines remain unknown and upstream investment terms still fall short of requirements, write Carla Bass and Stephen Cunningham Houston, 27 March (Argus) — The White House and the Venezuelan opposition say that the US' intervention will lead to significant and lasting change for Venezuela and its oil sector. For international oil companies, the proof will be in Venezuela's investment environment. Washington's control over Venezuelan oil funds will ensure the government in Caracas remains aligned with the US and international investor interests until fair elections can be held, US energy secretary Chris Wright told the CERAWeek by S&P Global event in Houston, Texas, this week. "It's not a Jeffersonian democracy yet, but it's meaningfully better than it was three months ago," he said. The US seized former president Nicolas Maduro on 3 January, accused him of widespread election fraud and drug trafficking, and put his vice-president, Delcy Rodriguez, into power. Washington has since eased sanctions on Venezuela's oil industry and obliged market participants to make payments through US-controlled accounts. It has demanded that Venezuela open its oil and other commodity sectors to investment. Caracas has passed a new hydrocarbons law , but further reforms are still needed to improve its international arbitration allowances. Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado appears understandably impatient for the free and fair elections that she hopes will shortly pave the way for democracy in the country, as well as transform and privatise Venezuela's oil sector after decades of decline. The US has yet to set a timeline for those elections, although its officials insist they are the end goal. Venezuela could reach 5mn b/d of crude production in 10 years if its oil sector receives $150bn of investment, Machado said at CERAWeek. This would be far above Venezuela's last peak of about 3mn b/d two decades ago, and current output of about 1mn b/d. Machado's plan for Venezuela's energy sector includes privatising state-owned PdV — which she says has become a "bankrupt, criminal organisation" — creating an independent energy regulatory agency, and offering 25-year production contracts with 20pc royalties and the ability for investors to book production. But her hopes go beyond the expectations of the international oil companies sizing up investment prospects. Chevron was the last US producer still in Venezuela before Maduro's seizure , and it has increased its output there since then, chief executive Mike Wirth said. Venezuelan oil reforms "have moved in the right direction" since the US intervention, but returning Venezuela to 3mn b/d "will require significant billions of dollars and time to get there", he said. Shell's initial focus in Venezuela will be geared towards natural gas that can be monetised through LNG, chief executive Wael Sawan said. "We could even be in a position to take final investment decisions on one or two projects before the end of this year, if afforded the right fiscal and legal frameworks," he said. Once bitten ExxonMobil initially told the White House Venezuela was still "uninvestable", but it has since softened its approach. It has a team on the ground assessing what it would take to rebuild the country's long-neglected oil industry, upstream president Dan Ammann told CERAWeek. ConocoPhillips maintains the most blunt assessment. Venezuela needs a "completely rewired" fiscal regime to attract the significant investment needed, as its revised hydrocarbons law is "woefully inadequate", chief executive Ryan Lance said. His company's priority is trying to secure the $12bn in international arbitration awards it is owed over Venezuelan asset seizures in 2007. And he had a message for the White House as it tries to spur new investments in Venezuela following its legally contentious intervention. "Not only do you need physical security, you need contract sanctity and policy durability, not only on the Venezuelan side but on the US side." Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Map: Primary Venezuelan oil assets
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Key price assessments
Crisis en Venezuela y su impacto en los mercados de crudo
La intervención de Estados Unidos en Venezuela ha generado incertidumbre y gran expectativa en los mercados de crudo tanto a nivel global como regional ¿Cómo han evolucionado los precios desde entonces? ¿Qué escenarios se pueden anticipar en un contexto de tanta volatilidad?
Regístrese ahoraTimeline: Key Venezuela sanctions dates
