Rosneft Says PDVSA Cut Debt To Russian Oil Firm To $1.1B

Venezuela’s state-held oil firm PDVSA cut its debt to Russia’s largest oil producer Rosneft to US$1.1 billion at the end of the second quarter from US$1.8 billion at the end of Q1, the Russian firm, one of the few still dealing with Venezuela, said on Wednesday.  

According to Rosneft’s Q2 results presentation published today, as of March 31, 2019, PDVSA still had to reimburse US$1.8 billion in prepayments provided by Rosneft. This outstanding debt decreased to US$1.1 billion as of June 30, 2019, the end of the second quarter.

Last year, Venezuela repaid US$2.3 billion of the loan it had received from Rosneft years ago, but the Latin American country still owed another US$2.3 billion, excluding interests, Rosneft said in its 2018 results release in February this year.

Rosneft has extended US$6 billion of loans to PDVSA, which needs to be fully redeemed through crude oil supplies by the end of this year.

As of December 31, 2017, Venezuela’s state oil firm PDVSA had to repay US$4.6 billion of the loan. Over the course of 2018, it reimbursed half of that amount, excluding interests, according to Rosneft’s 2018 financials presentation earlier this year.  

Referring to its oil assets in Venezuela, the Russian oil company said in February that it had participation in five oil projects and holds 100 percent in a gas project, with export rights.  

Earlier this month, people with knowledge of shipping arrangements told the Financial Times that Rosneft had remained the last gasoline supplier to Nicolas Maduro’s regime in Venezuela, extending a lifeline to the Socialist leader whom Russia supports.

According to documents seen by FT, Rosneft’s trading arm Rosneft Trading shipped all the gasoline that Venezuela imported in June—eight cargoes totaling 1.7 million barrels via ship-to-ship transfers offshore Malta, Gibraltar, and Aruba. 

Meanwhile, the U.S. has intensified sanctions pressure on Maduro’s regime, with the sanctions now likened to a total economic embargo by analysts.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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