Venezuelan PDVSA completes offloading ore from a floating facility inactive since 2019

Caracas. A Venezuelan oil company official said on Thursday that state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela has completed unloading crude, which has been stored at a floating facility on the country’s east coast since the United States imposed sanctions on it in 2019.

PDVSA began transporting crude oil in December from its Floating Storage and Offloading Facility (FSO), anchored in the Bay of Paria near the maritime border with Trinidad and Tobago, to the Inmaculada.

Later on, the ship transported the crude oil to various tankers operated by PDVSA. Naparema, part of the joint project Petrosucre between PDVSA and Italy’s Eni that operates the offshore Corocoro oil field, has intervened several times since last year due to mechanical problems causing its tilt, which according to experts has increased the risk of spills.

After complaints from environmental groups in Trinidad and Brazil, PDVSA has ruled out the possibility of an oil spill.

“@ Petrosucre1 successfully completes the crude oil offload operations at FSO Nabarima to boost oil production from the offshore field in the Bay of Paria. We keep winning!” Petrosucre President Joe Romero wrote.

Besides the tweet, the official posted photos of the workers in full swing and the oil facility.

PDVSA and Eni did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Venezuela’s state oil company is facing cash flow problems exacerbated by US sanctions, which have prevented it from carrying out maintenance and corrective repairs at a large portion of its facilities, increasing risk and accident rates.

Eni and PDVSA sold Petrosucre’s crude oil to US company PDVSA’s Citgo Petroleum. The supply contract was cut short two years ago due to Washington’s actions, leaving the project inactive and stranded with crude oil at Nabarema.