Sanctions against Russia make it difficult for Venezuela to benefit from the rise in crude oil

The benefits that Venezuela would obtain with the rise in oil prices will be reduced as a result of international sanctions against Russia, after the invasion of Ukraine, since a large part of the payments received by the country go through Russia, explained economists specialized in the sector. .

“There is a specific problem for Venezuela with this issue of war: How do we stand with respect to sanctions against Russia? A good part of the payments for our oil is received through there. So, on the one hand, you have more income, but now you have problems getting paid”, said the economist and oil expert Luis Oliveros.

In addition, he assured that the support that the regime of the illegitimate President Nicolás Maduro has shown to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, “could bring more sanctions against Venezuela.”

This Wednesday, the price of a barrel of Brent oil, for delivery in May, soared 7.58%, to close its trading on the London futures market at US$ 112.93, after OPEC+’s decision to maintain its plan to rise moderately the pumping.

Oliveros said that, without a doubt, an increase in the price is good news for Venezuela, which could sell its oil at a higher price, always taking into account that the state-owned PDVSA “sells its crude oil at a significant discount, sometimes up to 30% or 40% of the price” due to the complications of attracting buyers in the face of US sanctions against the oil company.

“So, although there are higher prices, we are not going to receive all the increase”, he added.

For his part, the economist Asdrúbal Oliveros, director of the Ecoanalytic firm, considers that there are two opposing forces operating: on the one hand, the rise in Brent benefits the State “with the little that it exports”, and on the other, “The entire dynamic of sanctions against Russia complicates the placement and collection of that crude“, given that “part of the payments move through Russia”.

Last Thursday, the leaders of the European Union (EU) gave the green light to new sanctions against Russia for the invasion of Ukraine, which affect the financial sector, energy, dual-use goods, transport or visas.

One of the main sanctions imposed is the exclusion of some Russian banks from the Swift payment system.

The president of the United States, Joe Biden, did not rule out this Wednesday vetoing US imports of Russian oil, and accused Russia of deliberately attacking areas where civilians reside in Ukraine.