SEATTLE (Oil Monster): Venezuela has surpassed Mexico to become the second-largest source of crude oil for U.S. refiners, amid restricted supplies due to ongoing disruptions in the Middle East region. U.S. refiners imported an average of 743,000 barrels per day (bpd) of Venezuelan crude during the week ended August 7, according to federal data.
Mexico supplied about 303,000 bpd during the same period. The shift highlights the growing importance of Western Hemisphere oil producers as shipments from major Middle Eastern suppliers face delays and uncertainty.
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Venezuela’s energy industry has remained operational despite severe earthquakes in June. All of the country’s refineries were reported operational as of August 14, despite some areas still recovering from the disaster.
Venezuela is estimated to hold about 197 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves, much of it linked to oil fields. Recently, BP reached agreements to develop the Loran gas field, which is estimated to contain around 4 trillion cubic feet of recoverable gas.
However, rebuilding the energy industry will require major investment and infrastructure upgrades. It must be noted that under-investment and poor management over the past several years have resulted in significant deterioration of infrastructure in the country.
