Wright: U.S. Indefinitely Controls Venezuela Oil Sales

SECAUCUS, NJ (DTN) – The United States will indefinitely control the sale of Venezuelan oil, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Wednesday (1/6) in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement that the U.S. intends to take possession of up to 50 million bbls of the OPEC nation’s supply.

Media reports quoted Wright as saying that the U.S. will be marketing the crude coming out of Venezuela.  “Indefinitely, going forward, we will sell the production that comes out of Venezuela into the marketplace,” CNBC quoted him as saying at a energy conference hosted by Goldman Sachs in Miami.

U.S. President Donald Trump wrote in a social media post late on Tuesday (1/6) that Venezuela would relinquish as many as 50 million barrels of oil to the U.S. in an arrangement that would benefit both countries. Since Sunday (1/4), the Trump administration has said it would be running Venezuela and the South American country’s oil after the capture of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro by U.S. forces.

The 50 million bbl of Venezuelan oil cited by Trump would represent about 30 to 50 days of production, given that country’s current output of around 1 million bpd output estimated by OPEC. Venezuelan oil on board of storage ships would be brought directly to unloading docks in the U.S., the president added.

Venezuela has a backlog of unshipped volumes piling up in storage tanks and aboard contracted vessels since a U.S. blockade that began in early December.

Media reports on Wednesday said the U.S. had seized a tanker carrying Venezuelan oil in the Atlantic, the third such seizure since last month.

Reports also said that Trump was due meet U.S. oil executives on Friday (1/9) for further discussions on Venezuela.