Page 6 - MEOG Week 43 2021

MEOG PIPELINES & TRANSPORT MEOG

PdVSA prepares to offload

Iranian condensate

IRAN VENEZUELA’S national oil company (NOC) The first shipment of condensate was diverted
PdVSA is set to begin offloading a 2.1mn-bar- to the Petrocedeno, Petropiar and Sinovensa pro-
rel shipment of Iranian condensate this week in jects, which are targeting oilfields in the Orinoco
the latest in ongoing swap activity between the Belt.
pariah states. According to sources spoken to by Reuters,
With both governments under US sanctions, NIOC may use the Venezuelan barrels as refin-
PdVSA and the National Iranian Oil Co. (NIOC) ery feedstock or a blending component, but it
last month agreed to a contract to swap Venezue- may also seek to sell it to buyers in Asia.
lan heavy crude for Iranian condensate. The deal is seen as a precursor to a much
The first shipment covered by the agreement broader, 20-year co-operation agreement
was a cargo of Venezuelan Merey crude sent between Tehran and Caracas which is seen being
aboard the National Iranian Tanker Co.’s (NITC) signed by the end of the year.
Felicity tanker. Iran then sent its inaugural cargo The countries’ foreign ministers Hossein
of condensate aboard the Dino I very large crude Amirabdollahian and Felix Plasencia met in
carrier (VLCC), which returned to the Islamic Tehran last week, during which they said a joint
Republic last week with a consignment of Merey economic co-operation commission would be
which had been loaded at the port of Jose. formed in the Iranian capital to finalise the terms
PdVSA intends to use the condensate to of the agreement.
increase the availability of light and medium “All of this confirms that relations between
crudes for refining with condensates and lighter the two countries are on the rise,” Amirabdolla-
grades often used to dilute its extra-heavy crude hian said, noting that energy would be one of the
and make it easier to use. topics of the collaboration.™

P6 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 43 27•October•2021