The United States plans to seize more tankers carrying Venezuelan crude, Reuters reported today, citing unnamed sources who said there was already a list of vessels targeted for seizure.
Earlier in the week, the move by U.S. federal government forces to seize the Panama-flagged tanker Skipper off the Venezuelan coast prompted a jump in oil prices as it signaled possible disruption of oil flows out of Venezuela. The news of plans for more seizures may extend the rally even though prices dipped on Thursday in a counterintuitive reaction to the original seizure.
According to reports, there are some 30 tankers under U.S. sanctions that transport Venezuelan crude to international clients. These may be forced to remain in port to avoid seizure, which would result in the abovementioned disruption. Shrugging this risk off, traders are selling oil, which has put Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate on track for a weekly decline.
“We’re not going to stand by and watch sanctioned vessels sail the seas with black market oil, the proceeds of which will fuel narcoterrorism of rogue and illegitimate regimes around the world,” White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told media on Thursday in response to questions about future seizures.
Meanwhile, the U.S. government targeted other parts of the Venezuelan oil industry this week, with the Treasury Department imposing sanctions on Maduro family members, a longtime business ally, and six companies operating tankers that have kept PDVSA’s exports alive through opaque shipping practices.
The freshly sanctioned tankers are flagged in the Marshall Islands, Panama, or the Cook Islands and were blacklisted for moving Venezuelan crude while using deceptive AIS practices to mask their routes. Several of the tankers, including the White Crane and Kiara M, loaded barrels as recently as October and are now frozen out of the U.S. financial system.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
More Top Reads From Oilprice.com
- Trump Reopens Alaska’s Arctic to Oil Drilling
- Oil Tanker Rates Skyrocket 467%
- Shadow Fleet on Edge After U.S. Seizes Tanker in Venezuelan Waters
