Venezuela sanctions spotlight
Overview
US sanctions on Venezuela’s national oil company PdV, first imposed on 28 January 2019, cast another layer of geopolitical uncertainty onto the international oil market. The sanctions take effect in stages, gradually intensifying their impact on the Opec country’s imports and exports.
For international oil companies, traders and governments around the world, the sanctions rollout and partial unwinding of commercial ties will help to shape near-term market dynamics, with longer-term implications for energy policy and investment.
Follow along with Argus as we deliver the latest news and market analysis on this fast-developing story.
Timeline: Key Venezuela sanctions dates
Related news and analysis
Venezuela oil can flow despite sanctions U-turn
Venezuela oil can flow despite sanctions U-turn
Washington, 3 March (Argus) — Venezuelan crude could remain available to most current buyers in the near future even though US president Donald Trump's administration says it is closing exceptions in sanctions against Caracas. Trump on 26 February said he would not extend a sanctions waiver that allowed Chevron to lift crude cargoes from its joint venture with Venezuelan state-owned PdV. US secretary of state Marco Rubio last week separately said via social media that he would recommend terminating all "oil and gas licenses that have shamefully bankrolled the illegitimate regime" of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro. Under normal circumstances, such announcements by the US administration include detailed guidance from the Treasury Department's sanctions enforcement arm, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). But OFAC in its guidance issued on Sunday, days after Trump's announcement, merely said it was "preparing to take action to wind-down General License 41 and other specific licenses as appropriate." General license 41 is the authorization for Chevron's activities in Venezuela, which was issued on 26 November 2022. "We will issue additional guidance to assist implementation concurrent with any changes to the authorization(s)," OFAC said. The 2022 authorization for Chevron was auto-renewed every month and allowed the company to operate in Venezuela for a six-month period after each renewal. Since Trump noted that he would not renew the license on 1 March, the terms of that license in theory allow Chevron to continue loading cargoes from Venezuela until at least 1 August. Multiple other foreign oil companies and traders hold OFAC licenses with sanctions waivers allowing them to load crude and other energy commodities from PdV. Former president Joe Biden's administration issued such authorizations because their terms do not involve direct payments to PdV. Most cargoes are loaded by operators in exchange for writing down debts owed to them by the Venezuelan government or by PdV. Caracas began to selectively default on its debts to foreign creditors in 2018, and foreign creditors have advanced claims totalling over $60bn. A group of those creditors have succeeded in forcing a sale of PdV-owned US refiner Citgo through a yet-incomplete auction overseen by a US federal court in Delaware. OFAC typically does not disclose sanctions waivers granted to individual operators. Some of them, including Spain's Repsol and Italy's Eni, previously have made public disclosures about holding limited sanctions waivers. It is also not clear if sanctions waivers issued to oil field service companies Halliburton, SLB, Baker Hughes and Weatherford, to enable their continued presence in or a future return to Venezuela, will remain in place. Trinidad and Tobago, which has a sanctions waiver to pursue a project to import Venezuelan gas for a Trinidad-based LNG project, said last week it "will do all in its power" to preserve cross-border oil and gas production agreements. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
End of waiver endangers Venezuela's 1mn b/d aim
End of waiver endangers Venezuela's 1mn b/d aim
Caracas, 27 February (Argus) — Venezuela has no plan for compensating for a production decline expected after Chevron's waiver that allows it to export crude runs out under the order of US president Donald Trump. Chevron had been exporting about 200,000 b/d to the US and importing condensate needed to dilute Venezuela's extra-heavy crude. This helped to push Venezuela's reported figure including liquids and condensates to 1.035mn b/d in January, although Argus estimates crude-only production at closer to 840,000 b/d. But the waiver that allowed Chevron to make investments there directed at exports to the US only will not be renewed on 1 March , Trump said on Wednesday, casting his decision as retaliation for Venezuela for not receiving enough migrants deported from the US. Chevron likely will have at least until August to wind down its operations in Venezuela, based on the terms of the license, but the US has not revealed details of the process. There are few immediate solutions to replace that support, government officials and sources at oil companies said. Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro downplayed the change, saying no "threat" will hurt "the will of the Venezuelan people to advance towards their independence, towards their freedom and towards their maximum happiness". Maduro threatened to jail any opposition politicians who have encouraged the US to remove the waiver as a way to pressure him out of office. Without Chevron investing in the joint-venture projects with state-owned PdV, it will be difficult for Venezuela to recover output elsewhere. "Maduro was caught by surprise," a political analyst in Caracas who asked not to be named said. "In Chavista circles [close to Maduro] the chatter was centered around normalization, Trump getting closer to [Russian president Vladimir] Putin, all that good stuff. Now this. They don't have a plan." Oil interrupted PdV and partners including Chevron, Eni and Repsol produced 1.051mn bl on 5 February, the highest level since 2018 and slightly higher than the January monthly average of 1.035mn b/d, according to the latest PdV production report seen by Argus. The FPO or Faja division was producing 601,800 b/d that day; while Occidente (Zulia) added 281,500 b/d and Oriente,149,400 b/d. Smaller producing areas include Los Llanos, with 11,900 b/d; offshore division Costa Afuera with 2,000 b/d and PdV Gas with 4,600 b/d. That production figure includes at least 35,000 b/d of condensate imported by Chevron. Venezuela may import as much as 165,000 b/d of condensate and lighter crude used to transport and upgrade Orinoco extra heavy crude, or 16pc of total reported production, Venezuelan oil economist Rafael Quiroz estimates. By Carlos Camacho Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Trump to revoke Chevron's Venezuela oil license: Update
Trump to revoke Chevron's Venezuela oil license: Update
Updates with reaction from Chevron, other details. Washington, 26 February (Argus) — US president Donald Trump said today he will revoke a 2022 Venezuela sanctions waiver, most likely referring to Chevron's authorization to lift crude cargoes from its joint venture with Venezuelan state-owned PdV. Trump did not explicitly reference Chevron, but his description of the waiver from Venezuela sanctions he said he was revoking matches the US major's authorization date and terms. The Chevron authorization would not be renewed on 1 March, Trump said. "We are aware of today's announcement and are considering its implications," Chevron said, adding that it "conducts its business in Venezuela in compliance with all laws and regulations, including the sanctions framework provided by US government." The 26 November 2022 authorization for Chevron was auto-renewed every month and allowed the company to operate in Venezuela for a six-month period after each renewal. Since Trump noted that he would not renew the license on 1 March, the terms of that license in theory allow Chevron to continue operations in Venezuela until 1 August. Chevron expects the six-month wind-down period to remain in place, a source close to the company's Venezuela operations said. The US Treasury Department has yet to confirm details of the new Venezuela sanctions regime as described by Trump. Former president Joe Biden's administration allowed Chevron to resume cargo loadings from Venezuela, only for imports into the US, in October 2022, as part of a deal with Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro's government to encourage holding free elections. The US imported 222,000 b/d of crude from Venezuela in January-November 2024, US Energy Information Administration data show. While insignificant for total US crude imports, Venezuela cargoes amounted to about 10pc of Chevron's global liquids output as of last year. Chevron's Venezuela presence did not result in major financial gains for Caracas. But it allowed PdV to stabilize and then grow Venezuela's crude output. Venezuela's crude production, including liquids and condensates, held at about 1.04mn b/d in January, according to PdV. Chevron was among a handful of western companies allowed to draw crude cargoes from Venezuela, but on terms that precluded direct cash payments to PdV. Independent refiners in China are the primary customers for Venezuelan Merey crude, imported through a network of ships, agents and brokers established to circumvent US sanctions. The scheme resulted in significant discounts for Chinese buyers of Merey, which traded at discounts ranging from $6.50-7/bl against May Ice Brent, for March arrival. Migration pipeline The Trump administration appeared willing to retain the Chevron authorization as long as the Maduro government cooperated on accepting Venezuelan nationals deported from the US. Trump's envoy Ric Grenell traveled to Caracas last month to discuss cooperation on migrants, and he suggested over the weekend that the US was no longer interested in a change of Venezuela's government. But Trump said today that the Maduro government "has not been transporting the violent criminals that they sent into our Country (the Good Ole' U.S.A.) back to Venezuela at the rapid pace that they had agreed to." Trump's Republican allies in Congress hailed his decision, describing the Chevron authorization as a "Biden oil deal". The Republicans hold a narrow 218:215 majority in the US House of Representatives, with two vacant seats in Florida that in November elected Republican lawmakers who since resigned. US relations with Venezuela are a key political issue in Florida, which is home to many Americans of Cuban and Venezuelan descent. Caracas blasted Trump's decision, with Venezuela's vice-president Delcy Rodriguez saying in a social media post that "these kinds of failed decisions prompted the migration from 2017 to 2021 with the widely known consequences." PdV and Venezuela's oil ministry declined to comment. By Haik Gugarats and Carlos Camacho Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Trump to revoke Chevron's Venezuela oil license
Trump to revoke Chevron's Venezuela oil license
Washington, 26 February (Argus) — US president Donald Trump said today he will revoke a 2022 authorization for Chevron to lift crude cargoes from its joint venture with Venezuelan state-owned PdV. Trump did not explicitly reference Chevron, but his description of a waiver from Venezuela sanctions he said he was revoking matches the US major's authorization date and terms. The Chevron authorization would terminate on 1 March, Trump said. The company was not immediately available to comment. Former president Joe Biden's administration allowed Chevron to resume cargo loadings from Venezuela, only for imports into the US, in October 2022, as part of a deal with Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro's government to encourage holding free elections. The US imported 222,000 b/d of crude from Venezuela in January-November 2024, US Energy Information Administration data show. While insignificant for total US crude imports, Venezuela cargoes amounted to about 10pc of Chevron's global liquids output as of last year. Chevron's Venezuela presence did not result in major financial gains for Caracas. But it allowed PdV to stabilize and then grow Venezuela's crude output. Venezuela's crude production, including liquids and condensates, held at about 1.04mn b/d in January, according to PdV. The Trump administration appeared willing to retain the Chevron authorization as long as the Maduro government cooperated on accepting Venezuelan nationals deported from the US. Trump's envoy Ric Grenell traveled to Caracas last month to discuss cooperation on migrants, and he suggested over the weekend that the US was no longer interested in a change of Venezuela's government. But Trump said today that the Maduro government "has not been transporting the violent criminals that they sent into our Country (the Good Ole' U.S.A.) back to Venezuela at the rapid pace that they had agreed to." The US Treasury Department has yet to confirm details of the new Venezuela sanctions regime as described by Trump. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Map: Primary Venezuelan oil assets
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