By SUZANNE DOWNING
More than a dozen oil tankers under U.S. sanctions left Venezuelan ports over the weekend, many concealing their locations in what appears to be an effort to evade the U.S. blockade imposed after the capture of Venezuelan narco-trafficker Nicolás Maduro, according to multiple reports.
The New York Times reported that at least 16 tankers either disguised their identities or went dark after departing Venezuelan ports. Four of the vessels reportedly left Saturday, shortly after Maduro was detained by U.S. forces, and traveled north of Margarita Island, according to Reuters, which cited satellite imagery analyzed by TankerTrackers.com.
Some of the tankers employed a tactic known as “spoofing,” transmitting false ship names and locations to obscure their movements. Reuters reported that most of the supertankers typically carry Venezuelan crude to China. Four vessels that left port Saturday were not authorized to depart, according to internal communications from Venezuela’s state-owned oil company, PDVSA, cited by the Times. Reuters, however, quoted a source familiar with the paperwork who said Venezuelan authorities cleared at least four tankers to leave and hide their whereabouts.
A US official declined to confirm or deny the attempted evasions, saying that the blockade remains in effect and is “focusing on sanctioned shadow vessels transporting sanctioned PDVSA oil.” Twelve additional sanctioned tankers that departed in recent days have not yet been located.
The departures are toting President Donald Trump’s blockade of sanctioned Venezuelan oil shipments, which went into effect Dec. 16. After Maduro’s capture, Trump said the blockade would remain in full force. Secretary of State Marco Rubio reinforced that message Sunday, saying the “quarantine” on Venezuelan oil would continue.
“That means their economy will not be able to move forward until the conditions that are in the national interest of the United States and the interests of the Venezuelan people are met,” Rubio said.
In December, the United States seized one sanctioned oil tanker linked to Venezuela and boarded another roughly 10 days later. US Attorney General Pam Bondi said the tanker seized Dec. 10 was involved in “an illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organizations,” specifically Iran.
For Alaska, the immediate impact has been negligible. While global oil markets often react to Middle East conflicts, the unfolding situation in Venezuela has not yet moved prices in a way that materially affects Alaska’s producers or revenues.
Analysts note that only a dramatic increase in Venezuelan output, on the order of moving from roughly one million barrels per day to three million, would begin to shift global supply enough to matter for Alaska. That scenario is considered a long way off. Venezuela remains a risky destination for investment capital, with political instability, sanctions, and now open maritime cat-and-mouse games deterring major investment.
Despite the broader geopolitical unrest, oil markets have so far taken the developments in stride. For Alaska, the Venezuela situation remains something to watch.
