Opposition leader Juan Guaido on Wednesday swore himself in as Venezuela’s rightful commander-in-chief in direct challenge to President Nicolas Maduro, who faces growing international criticism for undermining democracy.
Venezuela this month plans to import over 300,000 barrels per day (bpd) of refined products to ease domestic fuel shortages caused by hobbled refineries and need to prioritize exports, according to internal documents, reports Reuters.
Cash-strapped Venezuela settled a US$1.2 billion arbitration claim that will prevent a creditor from stripping away its crown jewel foreign asset, the U.S.-based Citgo Petroleum Corp refining business, according to Canadian court documents.
The United States is preparing a “series of actions” in the coming days to increase pressure on the Venezuelan government, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Fox News on Friday.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on Tuesday that new investments from China will help his country dramatically boost its oil production, doubling down on financing from the Asian nation to turn around its crashing economy.
A judge in Andorra has charged 29 Venezuelans with corruption - among them two former deputy ministers. Prosecutors allege that they were part of a network of corrupt officials who received US$ 2.3bn in bribes from companies in return for lucrative contracts with Venezuela's state-run oil company, PDVSA.
Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA is appealing a decision allowing Canadian miner Crystallex to take control of shares in U.S. subsidiary PDV Holdings as part of a 10 year dispute over the state takeover of Crystallex assets, a court filing shows.
Venezuela’s state-run oil company PDVSA has limited the damage from an unprecedented slump in crude exports by transferring oil between tankers at sea and loading vessels in neighboring Cuba to avoid asset seizures. But Venezuela is still fulfilling less than 60% of its obligations under supply deals with customers.
Venezuela is taking steps to direct dwindling motor fuel to politically loyal vehicle owners. President Nicolas Maduro ordered a national census on 3-5 August to determine how many vehicle owners possess a homeland identity card, a document created in first quarter 2017 to strengthen the government's social and political surveillance capabilities.
Venezuela’s oil production plunged by another 47,500 barrels per day (bpd) in June, compared to a month earlier. An exodus of workers and field shut downs were reported for the month, pointing to a grim near-term future that could see total production dip below 1 million barrels per day (mb/d) by the end of the year.