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Venezuelan oil exports 'at standstill' after US tanker seizure

US sanctions and tanker seizures have halted nearly all Venezuelan oil exports, trapping 11 million barrels in local waters and impacting the country’s economy, Reuters reported.

  • On Friday, Reuters news agency reported that the United States seized the Skipper tanker on Wednesday and took it to Houston, Texas, halting most tanker movements in Venezuelan waters.
  • On Thursday, the US Treasury sanctioned three relatives of President Nicolás Maduro, six shipping companies, and six vessels, while Washington offered a $50m reward for Maduro's capture.
  • Data show about 11 million barrels are stranded in local waters, with only tankers chartered by US oil major Chevron exporting two cargoes since the seizure; Venezuela shipped 952,000 barrels per day in November, mostly to China.
  • If exports stop, imports and foreign exchange would be at risk, Elias Ferrer of Orinoco Research warned of an economic crisis, while Venezuela's Executive Vice President Delcy Rodríguez filed an IMO complaint calling the seizure internationally illegal.
  • The US claims it is attacking drug trafficking vessels but has provided no evidence, and international law experts say the attacks amount to extrajudicial killings.
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Market Screener broke the news in on Friday, December 12, 2025.
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