Venezuela's Oil Exports Hit Capacity Ceiling at 1.25 Million Barrels Per Day

Venezuela's oil exports are facing a bottleneck due to aging port infrastructure and power outages, limiting shipments to around 1.25 million barrels per day.

Tankers are waiting as long as 30 days to load Venezuelan crude, according to Reuters, as PDVSA struggles to meet rising demand for the country's heavy oil.

The bottleneck is particularly problematic for Washington, which has been pushing to revive Venezuelan production and exports following Nicolas Maduro's removal in January. Over 500,000 bpd of Venezuelan crude is already heading to U.S. refineries, with Vitol and Trafigura exporting more than 140 million barrels since January under an agreement with Washington.

The constraint could worsen as PDVSA partners begin independently marketing their production under Venezuela's new oil contract rules, while the state company racks up demurrage charges for vessels stuck waiting beyond their loading windows. Some berth space is even occupied by old sanctioned tankers that arrived during Venezuela's years in the shadows.

The U.S. Energy Department officials report that more than 500,000 bpd of Venezuelan crude is already heading to U.S. refineries, much of it to Gulf Coast plants designed specifically to process the country’s heavy, sour barrels.