Venezuela is betting on coal to jumpstart its resource economy and exports amid increasing sanctions on its oil industry with few exemptions in the form of waivers.
At the end of 2024, a Venezuelan-Turkish joint venture restarted coal production at two mines in northwestern Venezuela – Paso Diablo and Mina Norte – after years of no coal output there at all, multiple sources from the Venezuelan company told Reuters.
The two mines are operated by the Carboturven joint venture, which is a partnership between Venezuela’s state-owned firm Carbozulia and the Turkish company Glenmore Dis Ticaret Ve Madencilik A.S.
Unlike oil, Venezuela’s coal is not under sanctions and now attracts additional efforts of Nicolas Maduro’s government to boost output, exports, and state revenues, of course.
Since the restart of the two mines, coal production in Venezuela reached about 3 million tons for the first quarter of 2025, per data from Carbozulia cited by Reuters.
This first-quarter figure puts Venezuela on track to top 8 million tons in annual production, which was last seen about two decades ago in the early 2000s.
Venezuela mostly exports its coal with higher energy content and aims to further increase exports as it seeks to boost its state revenues that have been severely crippled by the U.S. sanctions on its oil industry and exports.
Venezuela aims to boost its coal exports to 10 million tons per year, an anonymous employee at the Paso Diablo mine told Reuters.
But on its quest to boost coal output and exports, the South American country completely disregards any environmental concerns and regulations.
The restarted mines in northwest Venezuela pollute the air and water, spewing cyanide, mercury, lead, and cadmium into the Guasare River, as no safeguards are in place to ensure environmental protection, Indigenous leaders and members of local communities tell Reuters.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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