Venezuela's oil exports fall 11.5% over US tariffs and sanctions, shipping data show

• 42 tankers departed Venezuela carrying 804,677 bpd of oil, fuel
• China was the largest receiver with 483,700 bpd
• Some 80 vessels remain in Venezuelan waters, of which 35 laden
• European firms scheduling what could be last cargoes before wind-down deadline

April 1 (Reuters) - Venezuela's exports of crude oil and fuel fell 11.5% in March month-on-month as Washington's imposition of secondary tariffs and the cancellation of key licenses to operate in the U.S.-sanctioned energy sector led to delays and cargo suspensions, according to ship tracking data and documents.

U.S. President Donald Trump's administration announced last week a 25% tariff on nations buying Venezuelan crude and gas, which will begin this week, and notified foreign partners of state-run oil company PDVSA it would revoke the authorizations it had granted to them to operate and export from the OPEC country.

The measures followed the suspension of a key license for U.S. Chevron CVX.N to produce oil in Venezuela and export it to the United States, which last year was the second largest market for Venezuela's crude. The Treasury Department set May 27 as the deadline for the companies to wind down operations and exports.

Regular buyers of Venezuelan crude in China and India have suspended some cargoes for late March and April loading following the announcements.

In total, 42 vessels departed Venezuelan waters in March carrying 804,677 barrels per day of crude and fuel, and 341,000 metric tons of oil byproducts and petrochemicals, according to the data and internal PDVSA documents.

The March average was 7.8% below exports in the same month of 2024 and the lowest since December.

China was again the largest receiver of Venezuelan crude in March with 483,700 bpd, followed by the U.S. with 210,700 bpd, India with 60,160 bpd and Cuba with 50,130 bpd.

There were no crude exports to Europe last month. However, some European partners of PDVSA are scheduling and loading what could be their last cargoes before the end of the wind-down period, the documents showed.

Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said late on Tuesday in a post on Telegram that the figures published by Reuters were wrong and that oil exports had risen 8.78% in March. She provided no evidence for the figure nor any details.

The government of President Nicolas Maduro has always rejected sanctions by the United States and others, saying they are illegitimate measures that amount to an "economic war" designed to cripple Venezuela.

Two vessels have left Venezuelan waters without loading since February as Trump's pressure over the South American country has increased and Washington accused Maduro's administration of not doing enough to curb illegal migration to the U.S.

Other tankers spent weeks near Venezuelan ports even after receiving PDVSA's authorization to load, as many customers and ship owners wait to see how Trump's administration will apply the secondary tariffs.

More than 80 vessels were in or near Venezuelan waters this week, of which 35 were laden but have not left, according to satellite images analyzed by monitoring service Tankertrackers.com.

If sustained, the U.S. measures are expected to hit Venezuela's main source of revenue in the coming months as happened in 2020 when the U.S. imposed secondary energy sanctions on the country, experts have said.

But the nation could also find new ways to allocate its crude in Asia through third countries and trans-shipments at sea, a work-around solution other sanctioned oil producers and Venezuela have resorted to in recent years.

Venezuelan oil exports fell as US tariffs loom