Venezuelan army to keep PdV tankers on course

Venezuelan army troops have been deployed aboard 15 oil tankers owned by state-owned PdV to fend off mutinies and ensure that cargoes destined mainly for Cuba are delivered, according to officials from PdV, the defense ministry and the presidential palace.

The effective militarization of PdV's tankers reflects government concerns that dissident crew could thwart Venezuela's oil exports by sabotaging tankers or diverting cargoes, especially at a time of acute fuel shortages inside Venezuela. But the campaign could leave tankers vulnerable to search and seizure by warships patrolling the Caribbean, one expert warned.

Venezuela's president Nicolas Maduro ordered the defense ministry to launch Operation Sovereign Petroleum that seizes vessel control from officers following a 1 May incident in which the PdV-owned Manuela Saenz tried to defy oil ministry instructions to deliver a diesel cargo to Cuba.

The captain of the Manuela Saenz and several crew members were immediately arrested by the government's intelligence agency Sebin and accused of treason. The arrested personnel have not yet been arraigned before a civilian court.

A defense ministry official said they could be prosecuted in military courts if they are formally indicted on treason charges.

The 15 tankers now under permanent army control include the Manuela Saenz, Icaro, Negra Hipolita, Eos, Luisa Caceres, Rio Orinoco, Rio Apure, Rio Caroni, Paramaconi, Proteo, Nereo, Zeus, Hero, Yare and Yavire. The Rio Arauca is also on the list, but the vessel is currently seized off the coast of Portugal.

The tankers include eight Lakemax tankers built for PdV in the 1990s by South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries to transport crude from Lake Maracaibo in Zulia state and Puerto La Cruz in Anzoátegui state to US clients.

Since US sanctions were imposed on PdV on 28 January, these tankers have been used to transport oil to Cuba, and for floating storage and cabotage in Venezuelan waters. In the past the tankers were also used to transport cargoes to PdV´s storage facilities in the Dutch Caribbean, and some, such as the Icaro, have previously been seized by creditors.

The merchant marine captains and crew currently aboard the tankers will continue to operate the vessels with up to four army troops per tanker acting as observers to ensure the tankers and cargoes are not sabotaged, and any dissidence among the crew is suppressed, the defense ministry official said.

The army security teams placed aboard the tankers are equipped with side arms and Russian-made AK-103 automatic rifles, the official said. "The security personnel are prepared for any contingency that could arise aboard the tankers."

The soldiers took position on the vessels without incident over 16-19 May, the defense official added.

Eduardo González, chief executive of PdV´s shipping arm PdV Marina, was present at the army deployment aboard the Icaro and Teseo tankers anchored near the Amuay terminal at the 940,000 b/d CRP refining complex in Falcon state, a PdV Marina official tells Argus.

Since US sanctions against PdV were imposed in January 2019, the company has sought to circumvent their impact on its export and import operations by engaging in offshore ship-to-ship cargo transfers, and instructing tankers to switch off their transponders.

Venezuela's top civilian authority on the country's armed forces, Rocio San Miguel, said the Maduro government's decision to deploy army troops aboard PdV's tankers "turns them into military ships" potentially at risk of being intercepted, boarded and inspected by non-Venezuelan warships patrolling in Caribbean waters.

The oil ministry and PdV declined to comment, referring inquiries to the defense ministry.

Venezuela has a two-decade-old agreement with close ally Cuba to supply oil to the island in exchange for the deployment of Cuban specialists in security, healthcare and sports, among other fields. The country's political opposition has long argued that PdV is giving the oil away.

The US government last month started sanctioning some tankers and shipping companies involved in transporting Venezuelan oil to Cuba, which Washington blames for propping up the Maduro government.