Venezuela’s oil exports plummet in February with loss of China
/ Our Today
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Venezuela’s oil exports fell 6.5% last month from a month earlier to 737,000 barrels per day (bpd), as more shipments to the United States and Europe could not fully offset the loss of the country’s main market, China.
Washington has controlled the South American nation’s oil exports since early January 2026, when US forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Trading houses, Trafigura, Vitol and US producer, Chevron are now exporting the lion’s share of Venezuela’s barrels under US authorisations.
However, even as Chevron and the traders sent more cargoes to the US, Europe and the Caribbean last month, the increase was not enough to compensate for a 67% decline in exports to Asia, which averaged some 48,000 bpd, compared with 145,000 bpd in January 2026 and more than 600,000 bpd last year.
Reuters is reporting that a lack of very large crude carriers to transport bigger cargoes also limited exports from Venezuela, whose main oil port, Jose, handles about 70% of total shipments, creating a need for larger vessels to reduce loading times. Exports are expected to accelerate in March 2026, particularly to India, with at least half a dozen super tankers navigating to Venezuela to pick up cargoes.
Overall, oil exports in February 2026 were 6.5% lower than in January 2026 and stood 19% below the same month of 2025. Meanwhile, Venezuela’s direct exports to the US rose 32% to about 375,000 bpd in February 2026, while shipments to Europe increased ninefold to 158,000 bpd, with Spain’s Repsol leading purchases in that region.
The US-Iran conflict and fresh licenses granted by the US Treasury Department in recent weeks are also expected to expand the pool of companies exporting and refining Venezuelan oil, which could lead to cargoes reaching new destinations. Notably, faster exports could help drain inventories, which remained high at the end of February at 12.7 million barrels in Jose, the second-highest monthly level since 2025, and 26 million barrels in the country.
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