Venezuela's oil exports almost unchanged at 1.17 million bpd in Aug, data shows
XLE•Outlook for export flows
Venezuela's oil exports are expected to change soon following the migration of dozens of oil projects to new contract terms, which allow new supply contracts by PDVSA's partners, who will be able to commercialize their share of output independently.
An ambitious oil production deal recently announced involving Caracas, Washington and U.S. producer North American Blue Energy Partners also is expected to lead to a larger flow of Venezuelan crude to the United States.
August exports held near July levels
Sept. 1 (Reuters) - Venezuela's oil exports remained almost unchanged in August at 1.17 million barrels per day, with a larger flow to India and Europe compensating for lower shipments to the U.S., its main market, according to documents and vessel monitoring data on Tuesday.
The number of tankers lining up to load and their average waiting time increased last month as the poor condition of state-run PDVSA's terminals and crude quality issues caused longer delays, a roadblock on a U.S. plan to quickly boost the OPEC country's oil exports.
Shipments shifted toward India and Europe
Venezuela's oil exports to the U.S. averaged some 553,000 bpd, below the record of 786,000 bpd in July. Shipments to India rose 66% from the previous month to 297,000 bpd, while exports to Europe almost tripled to some 260,000 bpd.
The country also imported some of fuel last month, mostly U.S. naphtha to dilute its extra-heavy crude output, more than double the imported in July, the data showed.
