Chevron license termination may result in new oil export pact in Venezuela, sources say

By Marianna Parraga

HOUSTON (Reuters) – The cancellation of a license for Chevron to function in Venezuela may result in the negotiation of a recent settlement between the U.S. producer and state firm PDVSA to export crude to locations apart from america, sources near the talks mentioned.

U.S. President Donald Trump mentioned on Wednesday he was reversing the license, accusing President Nicolas Maduro of not making progress on electoral reforms and migrant returns.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio later mentioned on X he would offer international coverage steering to terminate all oil and gasoline licenses to corporations working in Venezuela “which have shamefully bankrolled the illegitimate Maduro regime”.

Corporations together with Repsol, Eni and Maurel & Promenade even have entry to Venezuelan crude beneath U.S. authorizations.

As of Thursday morning, the U.S. Treasury Division had not printed any license cancellation phrases nor set a deadline to wind down oil exports from Venezuela, which resumed crude gross sales to america in early 2023 after a 4-year pause.

Oil cargoes chartered by Chevron have been departing as scheduled from Venezuelan ports certain for america, in response to vessel monitoring knowledge and PDVSA’s inside export data.

Shippers had not been given instructions to decelerate loading or divert tankers, maritime sources mentioned.

Chevron mentioned it was contemplating the implications of Trump’s choice. Repsol, Eni and Maurel & Promenade didn’t reply to requests for remark.

Chevron’s six-month license has been renewed mechanically with out interruption since November 2022. Final yr, the corporate’s joint ventures produced a few quarter of all oil output in Venezuela and the nation grew to become the fourth largest crude supplier to america.

Spot costs of a key medium crude grade within the U.S. Gulf Coast spiked on Wednesday as refiners started looking for alternate options, together with Colombian, Ecuadorean and Guyanese grades.

Venezuela’s crude accounted for 13% of imports by U.S. Gulf Coast refineries final yr, in response to U.S. Power Info Administration knowledge.

(Reporting by Marianna Parraga, extra reporting by Sheila Dang; Enhancing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)