Venezuela’s Oil Exports Dwindle as US Sanctions Take Their Toll

By Marianna Parraga

March 25 (Reuters) – This week, the flow of Venezuela’s heavy crude from its primary oil ports has hit a snag. The slowdown comes on the heels of a new U.S. tariff targeting nations that purchase oil from this South American country, coupled with Chevron’s decision to scale back its tanker operations in the region, as revealed by shipping data and an internal document.On Monday, an executive order was issued by President Donald Trump’s management stating that any nation importing oil or gas from Venezuela will incur a hefty 25% tariff on transactions with the U.S., effective early April.Additionally, Washington has granted Chevron until May 27 to wrap up its activities in Venezuela, which includes halting exports of Venezuelan crude to American markets.

These recent actions have shifted Trump’s focus onto countries other than the U.S. that are still buying Venezuelan crude—China being a significant player in this scenario. However,how these tariffs will be enforced remains somewhat ambiguous.as of Tuesday reports indicated that Jose port—operated by state-owned PDVSA—had one empty berth while three supertankers were actively loading cargoes. In contrast, Bajo Grande port—which specializes in handling ultra-heavy crude—saw no tankers preparing for export at all.

Around two dozen vessels are currently anchored near Jose waiting for their turn to load up; simultaneously occurring, two ships lingered in Venezuelan waters after completing their loads recently.Notably, since mid-February two vessels have departed without any cargo onboard.This congestion could lead to further delays in loading and shipping as many buyers grapple with understanding how these new tariffs will impact their operations—especially those based in China who are among the largest consumers of Venezuelan oil.

While Chevron received an extension for seven more weeks to cease operations within Venezuela, it appears that this impending end-of-license situation—which previously allowed them to export around