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News > U.S.

US Treasury to Foreigners: No More Venezuelan Oil Transactions

  • Mural near the PDVSA headquarters in Caracas, Venezuela, Jan. 29, 2019.

    Mural near the PDVSA headquarters in Caracas, Venezuela, Jan. 29, 2019. | Photo: EFE

Published 2 February 2019
Opinion

The U.S. Treasury Department set transaction deadlines for the Jan.27 sanctions imposed on PDVSA.

The United States Treasury Department announced Friday that non-U.S. companies that buy Venezuelan oil through the U.S. financial system or U.S. commodity brokers, will not be allowed to carry out any purchase after April 28.

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“Transactions to purchase petroleum and petroleum products from PDVSA or any entity in which PDVSA owns, directly or indirectly... and that involve U.S. persons or any other U.S. nexus... must be wound down by April 28, 2019,” the U.S. Treasury states in a note, adding that “U.S. person employees and contractors of non-U.S. companies located in a country other the U.S. or Venezuela are authorized to engage in certain maintenance or wind-down transactions with PDVSA, or any entity in which PDVSA owns, directly or indirectly... through Mar. 29, 2019.”

The U.S. Treasury release follows the U.S. sanctions imposed, on Jan. 27, on the Venezuelan state-owned oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA). As a consequence, Venezuela's oil revenues obtained from sales to the U.S. market will be confiscated de facto.

Since most of the international oil trade is done in dollars, the United States is able to continue economic warfare against Venezuela, a country whose income comes mainly from oil exports.

Before President Donald Trump's measures were put in place against Venezuela, the U.S. was the destination of 40% of Venezuela's oil exports.

The sanctions affect some US$7 billion in PDVSA assets and will cause other US$11 billion in losses for the Venezuelan company throughout the next year.

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