Citgo to claim insurance on seized oil cargo

Venezuelan state-owned PdV's US refining subsidiary Citgo is expected to make an insurance claim on a crude cargo that it says was unlawfully seized in Venezuela this month.

The UK-flagged Gerd Knutsen oil tanker left Venezuelan waters with its crew after the government forced the vessel to discharge, Citgo said.

The empty Suezmax tanker is currently en route to the nearby Dutch Caribbean island of Aruba, two sources close to the matter tell Argus.

Citgo said today it will "continue to pursue all efforts to collect on losses that it incurred because of the unlawful seizure of its cargo by the Maduro regime and any entities that may have assisted it."

The 960,000 bl cargo of Venezuelan diluted crude oil (DCO) had been purchased by Citgo before the US imposed oil sanctions on Venezuela in late January 2019.

Houston-based Citgo subsequently came under the control of Venezuela's US-recognized interim government, severing all commercial ties with Caracas-based PdV that remains in the hands of President Nicolas Maduro's government.

According to Citgo's account, the loaded vessel was anchored 9mi (14.5km) off Venezuela's Guiria port until 9 February, when the government "escalated hostilities" by dispatching navy forces and others to forcibly board the tanker and by deploying the military vessel Cormoran to force the tanker to the Jose terminal to discharge.

The Gerd Knutsen was chartered to Citgo by Norwegian shipowner Knutsen NYK Offshore Tankers, which declined to comment. Built in 1996, the tanker is considered too old for most charterers.

By Patricia Garip