Caracas, Venezuela – A Venezuelan oil tanker belonging to Trafigura departed the port of Jose, bound for the US port of Louisiana.
This marks the first direct shipment to the United States under a 50 million barrel oil supply deal signed
this month between Caracas and Washington, according to data released by the London Stock Exchange Group.
The data indicated that the tanker, the Gloria Maris, flying the Liberian flag,
is carrying approximately one million barrels of Venezuelan heavy crude .
Venezuelan oil exports
This is the first shipment sent directly from Venezuela to the United States since the agreement was signed.
This development follows Vitol and Trafigura receiving the first two US licenses to load and export Venezuelan oil under the deal,
after previous shipments were transported to storage terminals in the Caribbean for redistribution globally.
The data also indicated that a smaller tanker, the Volance, flying the Barbados flag, departed from the port
of Jose carrying approximately 450,000 barrels of crude oil to a terminal in Curaçao, as part of the same deal.
The documents revealed that the two companies have so far shipped between 10 and 11 million barrels
of Venezuelan oil and are preparing to begin exporting fuel oil soon.
A blockade was imposed
These moves come as Venezuela prepares to lift the production cuts
that have been in place since the United States imposed
a blockade on oil tankers subject to sanctions, including more than 40 million barrels
that have been stored since last month.
These shipments represent a significant step in boosting Venezuelan exports to the US market
after years of restrictions and signal a revitalization of trade cooperation between Caracas and Washington in the vital oil sector.
