Updated
Updated · Bloomberg · Jun 11
Trafigura, Vitol Expand Venezuelan Oil Sales to Asia as Iran War Disrupts Supply
Updated
Updated · Bloomberg · Jun 11

Trafigura, Vitol Expand Venezuelan Oil Sales to Asia as Iran War Disrupts Supply

3 articles · Updated · Bloomberg · Jun 11

Summary

  • Trafigura has offered Venezuela’s Merey 16 crude to South Korean refiners and recently delivered cargoes to a refinery in Malaysia, signaling a broader push into Asia.
  • Rising Venezuelan production is giving traders more barrels to place just as the Iran war roils Middle East supplies that normally compete in the region.
  • Vitol is also expanding sales efforts, adding to a shift that could help Asian refiners diversify feedstock away from disrupted Gulf flows.
  • The move underscores how conflict-driven supply shocks are reopening market space for Venezuelan crude in Asia despite the country’s long-standing export constraints.

Insights

As the US markets Venezuelan oil, is Asia just swapping one region of instability for another?
Will the new Venezuela-Asia oil route permanently alter global energy power dynamics away from the Middle East?