Venezuela will likely boost its crude oil production by less than 200 Mb/d through 2024 even though the U.S. recently lifted most of its sanctions against the country’s oil industry, according to an analysis by the Energy Information Administration (EIA). The sanctions were imposed in early 2019 after the election of President Nicolas Maduro, which was widely seen as illegitimate. The sanctions relief, in effect for six months, came after Maduro came to an agreement with opposition leaders about the 2024 presidential election.
Venezuela produces a heavy crude oil that is well-suited to many U.S. refineries. Citgo, the U.S. subsidiary of Venezuela’s state-owned PDVSA, has three refineries (Lake Charles, LA, 463 Mb/d; Lemont, IL, 177 Mb/d; and Corpus Christi, TX, 167 Mb/d) which have a combined capacity of more than 800 Mb/d and are designed to process heavy oil. Citgo’s assets were scheduled to be auctioned October 23 to satisfy creditor claims against Venezuela and PDVSA. (The winning bidders in the auction are likely to be revealed next year.)
Comments
any affects on the gas sides? C3 or C5
In reply to any affects on the gas sides? by Mohamed Alshiba
The EIA's analysis focused only on crude oil, but there would be some impact on gas as well.
Venezuela does not export gas, but I've seen speculation that its gas could go to nearby Trinidad and Tobago, which is an LNG exporter.
The Congressional Research Service did an analystis of Venezuela's gas potential earlier this year: https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IF/IF12448/2