Venezuela's Oil Exports Surge Near 1 Million BPD Amid Sanction Challenges

Venezuela's oil exports increased to nearly 1 million barrels per day in November, primarily driven by heightened sales to Asia. Despite U.S. sanctions and infrastructure challenges, shipments rose significantly. The country also increased exports to European and Cuban markets while reducing reliance on U.S. sales.

Venezuela's oil exports surged to nearly 1 million barrels per day in November, fueled by increased sales to Asia, its primary customer base, according to shipping data analysis. Under U.S. sanctions since 2019, the country's oil industry has faced challenges of unpredictability in exports.

Data reveals the state oil company PDVSA and its partners shipped an average of 974,033 bpd of crude and fuel in November, mainly to China. This marks the second straight month of export increases, with a 10 percent rise compared to October and a 57 percent growth from the previous year.

Despite a major incident at a natural gas center impacting production, export numbers swelled, particularly to political ally Cuba. Meanwhile, imports of heavy naphtha through authorized agreements also rose marginally from the previous month.

(With inputs from agencies.)