Venezuela Oil Industry Fears Losing Ground if US Revives Sanctions
- Firms fret reestablished links with US suppliers may be halted
- January oil output rose 22% from prior year as sanctions eased
An oil pumpjack on Lake Maracaibo in Cabimas, Venezuela.
Photographer: Gaby Oraa/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is betting the US won’t revive all its sanctions as he backslides on a promise of free elections. Inside the nation’s oil industry, local operators are worried he’s wrong.
Oil and gas firms and contractors fear their nascent deals for everything from imports of new construction equipment to their connections with US banks will break off if Maduro’s ban of opposition candidates in this year’s election prompts the US to allow a six-month suspension on sanctions to expire in April.