Post #1301

Venezuelan Oil Minister Pedro Tellechea announced Friday that the country is in advanced negotiations with foreign firms to develop its natural gas reserves. The announcement comes as Venezuela seeks to increase its productive capacity after years of under-investment as a result of US sanctions. "Our goal is to explore, produce, refine and export every product we can," said Tellechea during an address at a business chamber expo. The Venezuelan oil minister added that he expects the country to finally hit the 1 million barrel per day benchmark this year, a goal that has eluded the state-owned oil company PDVSA in the recent term. Officials reported that the country was producing approximately 735,000 barrels per day (bpd) in June, the highest registered since early 2020. Tellechea claimed Friday that figure had increased to 831,000 bpd. Upon taking office, Tellechea quickly ordered the temporary suspension of all oil export contracts following corruption allegations involving PDVSA that led to a string of arrests and the resignations of senior officials, including his predecessor, Tareck El Aissami. Tellechea claimed that the country presently no longer has any suspended contracts. Under severe US sanctions, the Caribbean nation’s oil industry has been plagued by unreliable intermediaries that have seen the new leadership overhaul contracts and demand upfront payments. PDVSA has nonetheless maintained its productive operations, with Tellechea stating Friday that the oil company would continue to press forward despite the ongoing anti-corruption drive. https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/15814