PetroChina sees 2018 Venezuelan crude imports unchanged at 15 mil mt

PetroChina expects to import around 15 million mt of crude oil from Venezuela in 2018, unchanged from last year, despite falling production in the South American country, Zheng Jun, vice president of ChinaOil, PetroChina's trading arm, said on the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Petroleum Conference 2018 in Singapore. Venezuelan oil production has taken a hit, with the country in the throes of an economic crisis that has impaired its ability to maintain its oil facilities, pay workers and afford diluent to produce its extra heavy crude from the Orinoco Basin. Its export capabilities have also been hampered by difficulties in procuring tankers to ship crude, with ships facing delays at oil terminals and vessel queues extending to more than 80 tankers at one point in June waiting to load, according to shipping agents. More…