A Venezuelan oil sector worker of Petroindependencia SA, a PDVSA-Chevron joint venture in Venezuela. Photo: Chevron.
The US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), an agency of the US Department of the Treasury, has issued General License 41B, extending the authorization granted to oil company Chevron to conduct limited operations in Venezuela until May 27.
In a statement published by OFAC, the agency noted that the previous license—granted in November 2022 under the administration of US President Joe Biden—was set to expire on April 3. Consequently, the US government decided to extend Chevron’s activities in Venezuelan territory “to carry out an orderly exit from their operations.”
According to some analysts, this measure underscores that US President Donald Trump’s policy regarding so-called “secondary tariffs” against those buying Venezuelan oil and gas appears designed not only to restrict Venezuelan oil exports but also to prioritize sales to the US over other markets.
Trump’s decision to extend the deadline by nearly eight weeks follows a lobbying campaign by Chevron and coincides with Venezuela receiving a new Vuelta a la Patria flight carrying 199 migrants deported from the United States.
As previously reported, Republican lawmakers in Florida pushed to revoke Chevron’s license, arguing that its operations indirectly supported the government of President Nicolás Maduro.
License 41B stipulates that Chevron may not expand its operations into new oil fields in Venezuelan territory. It further prohibits the company from selling “petroleum or petroleum products produced by or through Chevron’s joint ventures for export to any jurisdiction other than the United States” and bans “any transaction involving an entity located in Venezuela that is owned or controlled by an entity in the Russian Federation.”
The OFAC clarified that Chevron is not permitted to “pay any dividend, including an in-kind dividend, to PDVSA, or any entity in which PDVSA directly or indirectly owns a 50% or greater interest.”
Notably, Chevron’s operations in Venezuela remain constrained by US sanctions, limited strictly to activities authorized by the OFAC, with licenses subject to review and renewal at the discretion of the White House.
Venezuela prepared for new US attacks
Diosdado Cabello, secretary general of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), emphasized that the Venezuelan government cannot control US actions but stated that Venezuelans are “prepared for any attacks against our people and seek to overcome them.”
The Venezuelan Economy After the US Ends General License 41 for Chevron
This Monday, during a press conference of the PSUV National Directorate, Cabello noted that Chevron’s license had just been renewed for two additional months. “We don’t control it; we adapt,” he said while adding that Venezuelans only need to count on their own strengths.
Referring to recent sanctions imposed by Canada, Cabello asserted that the Canadian government has proven itself to be “scoundrels who will tolerate anything and remain silent,” a reference to the Trump administration’s latest attacks threat against Canadian sovereignty.
(Ăšltimas Noticias) with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SL
