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Venezuelan oil resumed flowing to the U.S. in January under a Treasury Department license granted to Chevron that allowed it to expand output there and export the oil. Refiners including Valero and Phillips 66 (PSX.N) have bought cargoes from Chevron, according to U.S. Customs and shipping data. Chevron's license - and approvals granted to European firms Eni (ENI.MI) and Repsol (REP.MC) - allow only for oil or debt swaps. Chevron's resumption of Venezuelan crude imports has not led to an increase in the country's overall exports this year, according to PDVSA schedules and Refinitiv Eikon data. 2 U.S. oil company exported some 86,000 barrels per day of Venezuelan oil in February.

The unpaid invoices originated with dozens of little-known companies acting as middlemen for Venezuela's oil exports since U.S. sanctions in 2020 halted deals with international trading firms and customers. Venezuela's Attorney General's office in October began a probe after oil tankers absconded without full payment to PDVSA. Venezuela's oil ministry and PDVSA did not reply to a request for comment. Maroil boosted Venezuela's petcoke exports following a commercial pact with PDVSA in 2016. In Venezuela, two heavy oil upgrading facilities controlled by PDVSA, Petro San Felix and Petrocedeno, produce and store petcoke.

☆ Venezuela's Maduro suspends PDVSA restructuring committee after minister quits
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Deisy Buitrago | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

CARACAS, March 27 (Reuters) - Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro suspended a committee he had appointed to restructure state oil firm PDVSA under the supervision of Tareck El Aissami, the oil minister who resigned last week amid an expanding anti-corruption probe into the company and the judiciary. The probe has led to 10 officials and 11 businessmen being arrested and 11 more wanted. PDVSA President Pedro Tellechea was appointed as the new oil minister last week, giving him wide control of the industry. Maduro said last week a new restructuring process must begin in PDVSA, formally known as Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A., to audit its accounts and uncover corruption. PDVSA's restructuring commission was created to adopt urgent measures to "protect the industry from imperialist aggression."

CARACAS, March 25 (Reuters) - An expanding anti-corruption probe in Venezuela has led to the detention of 10 officials and 11 businessmen, the country's attorney general said on Saturday, adding that arrest warrants for 11 more people have been issued. The investigation, which began in October, is focused on state oil company PDVSA, a government entity supervising crypto currency operations, and the judiciary. This week, it led to the resignation of the country's powerful oil minister, Tareck El Aissami, who had served the government for two decades. The 21 people arrested face accusations of appropriation of public assets, money laundering, influence peddling and criminal association. Officials involved could also face charges of treason, the attorney general said.

He was replaced by Pedro Rafael Tellechea, who had been named to head PDVSA in January. Maduro said that his government was committed to "going to the root" of corruption, calling the probe which began last year "professional, scientific and disciplined." The Finance Ministry, the central bank, and PDVSA did not respond to requests for comment. It is unclear whether the corruption probe and contract review will concretely improve PDVSA's cash flows in the near future. PDVSA last year delayed cash payments in dollars to several of its suppliers because of dwindling income.

☆ Venezuela president names PDVSA head Tellechea as new oil minister
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Deisy Buitrago | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/File PhotoCARACAS, March 21 (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Tuesday named the head of state oil company PDVSA, Pedro Rafael Tellechea, as the new oil minister, a day after his predecessor resigned amid an extensive corruption investigation focused on the company. Former minister Tareck El Aissami resigned on Monday after the arrest of several government officials and judges in connection with graft investigations. Sources with knowledge of the issue said more than 20 lower-level PDVSA officials have also been detained over recent days. Tellechea has been head of PDVSA since January and ordered an audit into heavy losses suffered last year as tankers left the country without proper payments being made for cargo. It is not the first time the government has promised a crackdown on alleged PDVSA corruption.

HOUSTON, March 21 (Reuters) - Venezuela's state-run oil company PDVSA has accumulated $21.2 billion in accounts receivable, according to documents viewed by Reuters, after turning to dozens of little known intermediaries three years ago to export its oil under U.S. sanctions. The scale of the receivables explains a January freeze on supply contracts by PDVSA's new boss Pedro Tellechea, who sought to halt unpaid cargoes immediately after taking office. A series of attempts to tighten contract terms came after some vessels absconded without payment in recent years. PDVSA and Venezuela's oil ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Reporting by Marianna Parraga; Editing by Gary McWilliams and Daniel WallisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/5] A Venezuelan flag next to some flags of Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA is pictured near the company's headquarters, in Caracas, Venezuela March 20, 2023. REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez ViloriaCARACAS, March 20 (Reuters) - Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro on Monday accepted the resignation of the country's powerful oil minister following the detention of at least six high level officials amid a corruption probe focused on state-run company PDVSA and the judiciary. Arresting government officials for corruption is rare in Venezuela, a country that rights groups such as Transparency International have described as opaque. The sources also said that at least 20 lower level officials at PDVSA have been arrested in recent days. The arrests are the largest recent crackdown on alleged PDVSA corruption.

☆ Chevron-chartered tanker involved in collision with sanctioned vessel in Venezuela
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Companies Chevron Corp FollowHOUSTON, March 20 (Reuters) - A Liberia-flagged oil tanker chartered by Chevron Corp (CVX.N) had a minor collision with another vessel, the Bueno, in Venezuelan waters on Sunday, according to sources and a shipping report seen by Reuters on Monday. Incidents involving vessels, oil spills, fires and power outages are very frequent in Venezuela as state-run PDVSA's aging oil infrastructure does not receive proper maintenance and needed repairs amid U.S. sanctions on the country. Both were told by the port captain to anchor in specific positions and await inspections, according to a PDVSA shipping report. Tanker Bueno has been working for PDVSA since last year, moving oil and fuel between domestic ports under a time-charter contract. As of Monday, the Kerala had moved away from the collision site while waiting for a loading window at the Bajo Grande terminal, according to Refinitiv Eikon vessel monitoring data.

☆ Exclusive: Iran to start revamp at Venezuela's largest refining complex within weeks - sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Mircely Guanipa | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The companies are now expected to sign in the coming weeks a 460-million-euro contract to revamp the 955,000-bpd Paraguana refinery complex on the coast of western Venezuela, according to the sources. Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian arrived in Caracas on Friday and met Venezuela's oil minister Tareck El Aissami, according to tweets from the Iranian embassy in Caracas and Venezuela's oil ministry. PDVSA, NIORDC and Venezuela's oil ministry did not reply to requests for comment. A QUARTER OF CAPACITYA project to restore the complex's dilapidated power supply is also planned as part of the revamp, according to the sources. During the El Palito revamp, PDVSA sent home hundreds of Venezuelan workers to make way for the Iranian technicians, which triggered protests.

[1/2] An oil tanker is docked while oil is pumped into it at the ships terminal of PDVSA's Jose Antonio Anzoategui industrial complex in the state of Anzoategui April 15, 2015. It reinforces measures implemented last year after several buyers skipped out on payments for oil, which provides most of the South American country's income. After taking the helm, Tellechea launched an extensive audit of supply contracts, according to a written order to PDVSA seen by Reuters. The new terms narrow a wide variety of contract modalities to a few requiring prepayment of cargoes entirely in cash or allowing payment via goods and services to Venezuela, but they must be received before Venezuela will release the oil, according to the documents. Even long-term buyers must abide by the new rules that require payment in full by cash before each oil delivery.

HOUSTON, Jan 17 (Reuters) - The new head Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA has suspended most oil export contracts while his team reviews them, according to an internal document seen by Reuters and two people familiar with the matter. The freeze is leading to port delays, as vessels that were loading have been sent away and are waiting for new directions, the people said. Cargoes chartered by U.S. oil firm Chevron Corp (CVX.N) and Cuba's Cubametales have not been affected by the contract revision, according to separate documents and the sources. As of Jan. 17, most berths at Venezuela's main oil terminal, Jose port, were empty after vessels were moved away while awaiting further directions. Venezuela's oil exports last year declined 2.5% to 616,540 barrels per day due to infrastructure outages, U.S. sanctions and rising competition in its key Asia market despite assistance from ally Iran, according to shipping data and documents.

☆ Venezuela owes over $20 mln to law firms on guarding overseas assets
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] PDVSA's U.S. unit Citgo Petroleum refinery is pictured in Sulphur, Louisiana, U.S., June 12, 2018. Some U.S. courts have granted creditors rights to negotiate the sale of Venezuelan assets abroad in order to collect debts, such as the Citgo refinery, the crown jewel of Venezuela's overseas assets, and a subsidiary of PDVSA. In the document, a report from the interim government's prosecution team, the lawyers say failure to pursue the lawsuits would risk losing the overseas assets. Opposition groups maintain that control of overseas assets is not at risk, despite last month's removal of the interim government, though they have not given details of what will happen with ongoing litigation. Reporting by Vivian Sequera and Mayela Armas; Writing by Sarah Morland Editing by Marguerita ChoyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

REUTERS/Jorge Silva/HOUSTON, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Venezuela's oil exports last year declined due to infrastructure outages, U.S. sanctions and rising competition in its key Asia market despite assistance from ally Iran, according to shipping data and documents. Iran expanded its role in Venezuela last year, sending supplies to boost exports and technicians to repair a refinery. Venezuela's crude production averaged some 721,000 bpd according to a preliminary data for December and OPEC reports. A U.S. license granted to Chevron Corp (CVX.N) to recover output and exports in Venezuela will take effect this year. A global appetite for fuel alternatives boosted its oil byproducts exports, which added millions of dollars last year.

But a plan to move heavy oil quickly from inventories at the Petroboscan joint venture with state-run company PDVSA is facing delays because of lack of dredging at Maracaibo Lake's navigation channel, the people said. Petroboscan has instructed vessels since to limit their draft after loading at the Bajo Grande oil terminal. That means about 250,000 barrels of Boscan heavy crude can move at a time through the channel linking Bajo Grande to the Caribbean Sea. In a sign that Chevron expects to expand operations quickly, the oil producer has begun advertising for Venezuelan contract administrators and cargo schedulers. The company wants to assemble a trading team to market oil from Venezuela and expand its role in the four projects.

☆ Chevron to send 500,000-barrel cargo of Venezuelan oil to its Pascagoula refinery
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HOUSTON, Jan 3 (Reuters) - U.S. oil producer Chevron Corp (CVX.N) plans to export this month its first cargo of Venezuelan crude to its Pascagoula, Mississippi refinery following a U.S. license granted last year, according to shipping documents seen by Reuters on Tuesday. The 500,000-barrel cargo of Hamaca heavy crude, to be loaded at state-run PDVSA's Jose port, comes from the Petropiar oil joint venture operated by both companies. As of Tuesday, the tanker scheduled to carry the shipment, the Bahamas-flagged Caribbean Voyager, was waiting to load near Jose, Refinitiv Eikon data showed. Chevron declined to comment on Tuesday and PDVSA did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Washington had previously authorized Italy's Eni (ENI.MI) and Spain's Repsol (REP.MC) to recoup pending debts in Venezuela by taking Venezuelan crude for refining in Europe.

[1/5] Drivers wait in line to get gasoline amid repeated outages at refineries operated by state oil company PDVSA and a lack of imports of diesel and gasoline, in Maracay, Venezuela, December 9, 2022. In 2020 and again in 2021, drivers had to line up for days to get gasoline and farmers halted work because of insufficient diesel. Right after midnight, the station ran out of gasoline," said Ramon Blanco, a 32-year-old who filled up the next day at another station. But lines also have reappeared in Falcon state, home of PDVSA's largest oil refineries. "We are trying our best because we are under pressure to restart some plants for producing gasoline," said a worker from Amuay.

☆ Ex-U.S. lawmaker arrested for conspiring to act as agent of Venezuela
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Former U.S. lawmaker David Rivera was arrested on Monday on charges of conspiring to launder money and to illegally act as an agent of the Venezuelan government, according to a U.S. official and an indictment. Rivera and associate Esther Nuhfer sought to improve bilateral ties and prevent further U.S. economic sanctions against Venezuela, without disclosing this as required by the Foreign Agents Registration Act, according to the indictment. "On November 16, 2022, Rivera was indicted by a federal grand jury sitting in the Southern District of Florida." In 2020, a PDVSA unit under opposition control sued Interamerican Consulting, stating it received $15 million from PDVSA but performed no meaningful services. Interamerican paid millions of dollars to a company managing yachts for a Venezuelan businessman, according to records that emerged from that lawsuit.

Exports also benefited from the restart of a PDVSA-Chevron crude upgrader at their Petropiar joint venture in the Orinoco Belt. Nearby, one of Petrolera Sinovensa's two crude blending plants operated by PDVSA and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) also resumed work. Venezuelan PDVSA's crude processing facilities restarted operations after outages and a lack of diluents, leading to a sale increase in November. PDVSA also sent about 38,000 bpd of crude, fuel oil and gasoline blend stock to key political ally Cuba. Another Iran-flagged tanker in Venezuela, the Huge, is also expected to navigate back carrying fuel oil for NICO this month as part of an oil swap with PDVSA, according to the documents.

☆ Venezuela's biggest refinery halts gasoline production -sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

CARACAS, Dec 2 (Reuters) - A refining unit that turns crude oil into fuel at Venezuela's largest crude processing facility has broken down, three people familiar with the operations told Reuters on Friday, halting production at the key gasoline producing plant. The breakdown of the fluid catalytic cracker (FCC) caused the country's largest refinery, 645,000 barrel per day (bpd) Amuay on the Paraguana peninsula, to halt gasoline production on Thursday, one of the sources said. Venezuela's refineries suffer frequent outages leading to production losses due to system failures and lack of supplies. Amuay, together with the nearby Cardon refinery, make up the Paraguana Refining Center (CRP) in Venezuela's western Falcon state, with a combined crude processing capacity of 955,000 bpd. Cardon's catalytic cracker, which can process up to 45,000 bpd, was still operational on Friday, the sources said.

☆ Venezuela, Chevron formally sign oil contracts in Caracas
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Deisy Buitrago | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

CARACAS, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Venezuela's oil minister and top representatives of state-run company PDVSA on Friday signed contracts with U.S. oil firm Chevron Corp (CVX.N) intended to help revive the nation's oil output and expand operations. "This is an important step towards the right direction, but yet insufficient," said oil minister Tareck El Aissami after the signing ceremony. The event took place at PDVSA's Caracas headquarters and was attended by El Aissami, Chevron's President for Venezuela, Javier La Rosa, and PDVSA President Asdrubal Chavez. The authorization was required because of U.S. sanctions on PDVSA and Venezuela's oil sector. Earlier this year, OFAC authorized Chevron to hold meetings with Venezuelan officials, including people specifically sanctioned by Washington, like El Aissami.

☆ Venezuela signs contracts with Chevron to reanimate, expand oil output
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

CARACAS, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Venezuela's oil minister and top representatives of companies PDVSA and Chevron Corp (CVX.N) on Friday signed contracts aimed at reviving crude output and expanding operations in the U.S.-sanctioned nation, following a license by Washington. The contracts include the joint ventures Petroboscan and Petropiar, officials said, but details were not disclosed. The documents were signed at PDVSA's Caracas headquarters by minister Tareck El Aissami, Chevron's President for Venezuela, Javier La Rosa, and PDVSA's president Asdrubal Chavez. Reporting by Deisy Buitrago; Editing by Gary McWilliamsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

But satellite images and photos show the Chinese-owned ship had loaded the oil four months earlier in Venezuela, an OPEC nation in South America under U.S. oil sanctions. Two of those tankers, including the Young Yong, were designated this month by U.S. authorities for violating sanctions on Iran, one of Venezuela's closest allies. The U.S. Treasury declined to comment on the involvement of the Young Yong or the other vessels identified by Reuters in shipping Venezuela crude. Indonesian authorities said in early November that the Young Yong had run aground off the Riau Islands on Oct. 26. The United States imposed oil trading sanctions on Venezuela in 2019 after calling Maduro's re-election the previous year a sham.

The United States on Saturday granted Chevron a six-month license to operate in Venezuela, reinstating oil trading privileges it had, while preventing exchanges of cash and requiring the crude cargoes go to U.S. refiners. Executives at Venezuelan state firm PDVSA initially welcomed the authorization for a partial return to the United States, once the country's most important market. In addition, European oil companies Eni (ENI.MI) and Repsol won U.S. approvals to take Venezuelan crude for debt repayment. Chevron's Venezuelan oil cargoes face potential seizures by creditors that have arbitration claims and court judgments, said trading experts and lawyers. Washington placed tight reins on the oil imports to win support from a Congress skeptical of deals with Maduro.

REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File PhotoHOUSTON, Nov 9 (Reuters) - A grounded oil supertanker under U.S. Treasury Department sanctions being refloated in Indonesia is filled with Venezuelan fuel, according to vessel monitoring services. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control last week imposed sanctions on the stranded tanker, Young Yong, for its part in an international oil smuggling network that Washington said supports Hezbollah and Iran's Quds Force. Both tankers had departed between late July and early August carrying fuel oil supplied by Venezuela's state-run oil firm PDVSA, according to internal company documents seen by Reuters and TankerTrackers.com, which confirmed the vessels' identities. The Panama-flagged Eagle Brenda, identified on PDVSA shipping schedules as "Eagle I," also carried some 1 million barrels of Venezuelan fuel oil, the documents showed. The tanker was in Venezuelan waters at least twice since last year, where it loaded Venezuelan crude and fuel for exports, according to PDVSA's schedules and TankerTrackers.com.

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