Venezuelan oil exports increase in February

Venezuela's oil exports surged over 700,000 barrels per day (bpd) in February, their highest level in a decade, driven by more sales of fuel cargoes to new customers in Asian markets, according to Refinitiv Eikon's tanker tracking data and documents. A growing number of unexperienced oil trading customers has helped Venezuela's state-owned PDVSA reallocate crude oil and fuel in Asia, particularly since the U.S. Treasury Department's sanctions tightened oil swaps from PDVSA's long-term clients in the final quarter of 2020 has stopped. Those buyers, who sources have referred to as "phantom customers", have steadily increased their consumption of Venezuelan oil since October when they took about 123,000 bpd to 568,200 bpd last month, accounting for three-quarters of the country's total exports during that period, according to the data and internal documents of PDVSA. PDVSA and its joint ventures shipped a total of 30 cargoes of about 732,107 bpd of crude oil and refined products in February, nearly 35% higher than January exports but still 34% lower than the 1.11 million bpd in February 2020, like that Data showed. Exports were boosted by more cargoes moving heating oil to Asia, one of the few refined products still in surplus Venezuela, which rose 33% in February to 155,220 bpd from 105,740 bpd in January. China, Singapore and Malaysia were the top destinations for Venezuela's oil exports, followed by Cuba and Europe. PDVSA and the Venezuelan Ministry of Oil did not respond to requests for comment. The larger sales in recent months have allowed PDVSA to maintain stocks of heavy crude oil at around 9 million barrels, according to company documents, a key metric to avoid further production cuts in Venezuela's largest production region, the Orinoco Belt. As of February 26, the heavy crude oil supply in Jose, the country's main oil port, was 9.05 million barrels, well below the record high of 14.8 million barrels at the end of June. Venezuela's fuel imports also rose last month, to 42,500 bpd, boosted by the discharge of three loads of Iranian gasoline, according to the data and sources. At least one of the tankers was loading Venezuelan jet fuel last week bound for Iran in exchange, according to the documents.