PdV terminals eye growing tanker backlog

OREANDA-NEWS. June 02, 2016. Payments and infrastructure problems continue to cause major operational disruptions at all of state-owned oil company PdV's terminals in Venezuela and Curacao, according to shipping brokers based in Caracas and Willemstad.

About 83 tankers currently are stacked up at PdV's terminals in Venezuela and Curacao, including 48 tankers at Curacao, Aruba, and the 940,000 b/d CRP refining complex on the Paraguana peninsula.

Another 35 tankers are clustered in and near Pozuelos Bay waiting to load and discharge crude and products at the Taecja terminal located at PdV's Jose complex in Anzoategui state.

The energy ministry blames the tanker backlog on infrastructure problems at the Taecja terminal, including three damaged loading arms that were replaced this week and should be fully operational by next week.

The new loading arms at Jose's Taecja terminal will boost crude loading capacity by 90,000 bl per hour, allowing the company to clear the tanker backlog quickly, PdV said.

PdV and the energy ministry denied the company is having cash flow problems that have delayed payments for critical imports of light crudes and heavy naphtha used as diluent with Orinoco extra-heavy crudes to yield an exportable Merey 16 heavy grade prized by refiners in China and India.

But shipping brokers in Caracas said that British oil firm BP is holding up delivery of 2mn bl of light sweet US crude destined for Curacao's Bullen Bay terminal until PdV pays for the crude.

The 2mn bl of US oil, currently loaded aboard four tankers anchored off Bullen Bay, is part of an 8mn bl light crude supply tender that PdV awarded last March to BP and China Oil.

PdV has paid for roughly half of the 8mn bl of light crude imports scheduled for delivery in May and June, and will pay the balance outstanding on schedule "as agreed with our suppliers," the energy ministry said, declining to give more details on the matter.

Sources told Argus late yesterday that one of the US cargoes purchased through this tender has already been diverted to Europe on the tanker Seamagic. Vessel-tracking data indicates the ship is currently on its way to Rotterdam.

PdV originally offered light crude suppliers several payment options including cash and crude under a formula that would swap Venezuelan heavy crudes for imported light crudes.

But BP and other suppliers including Shell and China Oil want cash because the crude grades offered by PdV are commercially unattractive, the energy ministry said.