Venezuelan Oil Exports To Europe Set To Resume After Two Years
Date
6/19/2022 4:55:20 AM
(MENAFN- AzerNews)
By Trend
A 650,000-barrel-cargo of Venezuela's oil chartered by Italy's
Eni is about to set sail carrying the first export of crude from
the U.S.-sanctioned country to Europe in two years, Refinitiv Eikon
data showed on Friday, Trend reports with reference to Reuters .
The U.S. State Department sent letters to Eni and Spain's Repsol
in May authorizing them to resume taking Venezuelan crude as a way
to settle billions of dollars of unpaid debt and dividends owed by
the OPEC-member nation.
A second tanker chartered by Eni, the very large crude carrier
(VLCC) Pantanassa, is currently navigating towards Venezuela and
expected to load 2 million barrels of the same grade, diluted crude
oil (DCO), and take it to Europe, according to the Eikon data and a
shipping document seen by Reuters.
That cargo is expected to be delivered by Venezuela's
state-owned PDVSA later this month with an option for Eni to sell a
portion of the crude to Spain's Repsol for its Cartagena and Bilbao
refineries, according to the document and sources.
The Malta-flagged Pantanassa is scheduled to load via
ship-to-ship transfer near Venezuela's Amuay port, the document
added.
Eni, Repsol and PDVSA did not immediately reply to requests for
comment.
Venezuela's May oil exports plummeted to the lowest level in 19
months over contract changes enforced by PDVSA to switch most spot
sales to prepayment, reducing the risk of unpaid cargoes. The
change did not affect customers under swap deals of debt payment
agreements.
European, Asian and U.S. companies operating joint ventures with
PDVSA in Venezuela, including Eni, Repsol, Chevron, ONGC Ltd, and
Maurel & Prom, have accumulated billions of dollars in pending debt
since the government of then U.S. President Donald Trump suspended
oil swaps used for exchanging Venezuelan oil for fuel and debt
payments.
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