US clears Eni plan to transfer Venezuelan oil

Itay's Eni has secured assurance from the US government that it can transfer Venezuelan crude off an impaired storage vessel without triggering sanctions.

But the company's plan to transship the Corocoro crude from the Nabarima floating storage and offloading unit (FSO) still hinges on approval by the PetroSucre joint venture operator, Venezuela's state-owned PdV.

"Eni's plan to safely offload the Nabarima FSO received on Thursday, October 29, a green light from the US authorities, confirming that the current sanctions policy does not prevent the company from offloading the cargo and repairing the vessel. The company will be able to proceed upon approval of its plan by PdVSA," Eni said late today.

PdV has already begun to transfer the oil using a slow and precarious barge-based process. It was not immediately clear how much of the 1.3mn bl of crude is still on board the vessel.

The Venezuelan company has not commented on Eni's transshipment plan.

The Nabarima started listing around August, raising concerns over a potential oil spill in the shallow Gulf of Paria between Venezuela and nearby Trinidad and Tobago.

By Patricia Garip