U.S. forces seized two Venezuela-linked oil tankers—one flying a Russian flag—in the Atlantic, intensifying Trump’s push to dominate Venezuelan oil flows after capturing Maduro. China slams it as “bullying” as prices drop on expected supply surge.
INTERNATIONAL Feed Atom
Trump says Venezuela’s interim authorities will transfer 30–50 million barrels of sanctioned crude to the U.S., to be sold at market price with proceeds controlled by his administration — a move tied to the recent U.S. operation that captured Nicolás Maduro and framed as benefiting both countries.
India has bought ~€144bn of Russian crude since Feb 2022, becoming Russia’s second-largest buyer after China, CREA says. Total Russian fossil fuel export revenues now near €1tn—continuing to bankroll Moscow’s war effort in Ukraine.
India’s Reliance Industries, once the top buyer of Russian crude, says it expects ZERO Russian oil deliveries in January & none received in past 3 weeks—signaling a sharp drop in India’s imports amid tougher Western sanctions & push for US trade deal.
The United States could raise tariffs on India if New Delhi does not meet Washington’s demand to curb purchases of Russian oil, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday, escalating pressure on the South Asian country as trade talks remain inconclusive.
Venezuela’s state-owned oil company PDVSA has asked several joint ventures to reduce crude oil output as exports remain paralyzed and storage fills up, adding stress to an already fragile oil sector and deepening pressure on the interim government.
Trump said after Maduro’s removal that major U.S. oil companies are ready to invest billions to revive Venezuela’s battered oil sector, though analysts warn restoring production will require massive, long-term investment despite the country’s vast reserves.
Venezuela’s state oil producer PDVSA says production and refining continue normally, with no damage reported after a U.S. military strike that captured President Nicolás Maduro, sources told Reuters.
India has ordered refiners to report weekly oil purchases from Russia and the U.S. as it expects Russian imports to drop below 1 mbpd while negotiating a trade deal with Washington to ease 50% U.S. tariffs over its continued buying of discounted Russian crude.
Philip Mshelbila of Nigeria officially assumed his duties as secretary-general of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum on Jan. 1, succeeding Algeria’s Mohamed Hamel, who completed his four-year term.
India stands to save approximately $1 billion each year in crude oil imports by converting just 10% of diesel consumption in the transport sector to liquefied natural gas (LNG), according to a study by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB).
Turkey’s Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar announced on Wednesday that the country will deploy the Cagri Bey drilling vessel to Somali waters in February, marking Turkey’s inaugural deepwater exploration project abroad.
US crude oil imports dropped to 4.95M bpd last week—lowest in nearly 5 years—due to ad valorem taxes on year-end stocks. Mexico imports hit record low of 71K bpd amid Pemex production struggles. Inventories fell on strong refining.
The US Treasury has sanctioned four companies and four oil tankers linked to Venezuela’s “shadow fleet” as Trump ramps up pressure on Maduro. Exports have already halved due to a blockade—aimed at stopping oil profits funding alleged drug trafficking.
Saudi Aramco is set to take a 20% stake in BPCL’s $11bn greenfield refinery–petrochemical complex at Ramayapatnam port, as India’s state refiner dilutes 30–40% of the project to strategic investors to meet rising fuel and petrochemical demand.
Despite a U.S. blockade and a sharp fall in exports, at least two oil tankers have reached Venezuela in recent days, underscoring PDVSA’s push to build floating storage and keep crude flowing—mainly to China to repay debt.
India is offering 50 new exploration blocks for oil, gas, and coal bed methane under multiple bid rounds, aiming to boost domestic output and cut heavy reliance on energy imports, the oil minister said.
Oil output in Kazakhstan declined by around 6% in December, led by a fall at the vast Chevron-led Tengiz oilfield after a Ukrainian drone attack damaged Russia’s Black Sea exporting terminal, an industry source said on Monday.
India is pursuing more than $30 billion in compensation from Reliance Industries and partner BP in a long-running arbitration dispute, alleging the companies failed to produce vast amounts of natural gas from deepwater fields due to mismanagement, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters exclusively.
U.S. tariffs and diplomatic claims put India’s balancing act between cheap Russian oil and American demands under the spotlight as officials and industry await hard data on import cuts.