Venezuela’s state-run Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) is spurring crude blending and upgrading to a six-month high on the back of the strengthening exports despite US sanctions.
The upgrades convert the Orinoco belt’s extra-heavy oil into exportable crude grades. The country’s Petropiar upgrader produced 115,000 barrels of Hamaca crude while the Sinovensa blending facility produced 158,000 barrels of Merey crude.
Both levels are the highest seen since March, as September exports increased to the highest level in five months on the back of Washington’s grant to PDVSA’s customers’ deadlines of between October and November to schedule their last cargoes under the few remaining exemptions to its sanctions on the company.
These upgraders had only been operating intermittently in these past months on the back of the slump in exports and technical issues. Meanwhile, three other Venezuelan upgraders have been offline for more than a year.
