Venezuela Rations Energy With Shorter Work Days

The Venezuelan government has reduced the work week for public servants in the country in a bid to reduce energy consumption amid a weather-related supply crunch, Bloomberg has reported, citing a government document mentioning “a climate event” affecting hydropower supply.

“We will have six weeks of energy savings,” Diosdado Cabello, interior minister, said, as quoted by the publication. “We must take precautions to avoid taking more drastic measures in the future.” According to the Bloomberg report, warm weather has reduced the amount of available water in dams in the Andean part of the country.

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Venezuela has been struggling with securing energy supply for years amid U.S. sanctions that have greatly reduced its oil income along with infrastructure mismanagement. Despite the U.S. sanctions, Venezuela last year enjoyed an over 10% increase in oil imports, to the highest since 2019, at 772,000 barrels daily. Some 200,000 bpd of this went to U.S. Gulf Coast refiners, despite the sanctions, after the Biden administration granted Chevron a waiver so it could resume operations in the South American nation.

President Trump, however, has refused to extend Chevron’s sanction waiver, instead opting for a double down on more sanctions—this time in the form of tariffs. Earlier this week, Trump announced that any country that buys oil and gas from Venezuela will face 25% tariffs on its trade with the United States. The tariff slap is part of Trump’s push to curb illegal migration, including from Venezuela, which, he said, had sent “tens of thousands” of people to the U.S. who have a “very violent nature.”

China is by far the biggest buyer of Venezuelan oil, taking in some 500,000 barrels daily, both directly and indirectly, according to Reuters, accounting for the bulk of total exports, based on the latest figures. India also imports Venezuelan crude—in growing volumes—as do Italy, Spain, and Cuba.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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