Days After U.S. Operation, Chevron Resumes Oil Shipments From Venezuela
On Monday, the latest consignment of Venezuelan oil for U.S. supermajor Chevron departed for the Gulf Coast, a show of continuity after the U.S. capture of former dictator Nicolas Maduro last weekend. It was the first Chevron cargo to depart since January 1, according to Reuters.
Chevron is the only American oil major working in Venezuela, where it has more than a century of history in developing onshore E&P. It currently produces about 240,000 bpd of crude in the country, near its maximum planned capacity, Reuters reports.
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After last weekend's developments in Caracas, Wall Street responded to the prospect of a foreign investment-friendly Venezuelan regime by bidding up share prices of the firms well-placed to capitalize on a stronger private participation in the oil industry. Chevron stock is up by 8.5 percent since last week, buoyed by its likely outlook in Venezuelan oil, as well as the first production from a new well off Angola. American oilfield-services firms SLB (formerly Schlumberger) and Halliburton, which would be well-positioned to carry out upgrades for Venezuela's deteriorated oil infrastructure, both rose more than 15 percent over the same period.
Oil prices have not changed appreciably since the takeover, a sign of investor expectation that Venezuelan exports will remain steady for the near future. A full restoration of peak production of Venezuela's extra-heavy crude would require significant infrastructure investment and years of effort, energy market analysts say.
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