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On January 5, with Nicolás Maduro two days into US custody, the Energy Secretary, Chris Wright, placed a call to Vitol’s John Addison, then one of the company’s senior traders, to talk about Venezuela. Both the Department of Energy and Addison have confirmed the call to Reuters, which reported on November 11 that Vitol and Trafigura each held a license to sell Venezuelan oil by January 9 and that no competitive bidding was held. The administration says moving fast was critical. More than $12.26 billion flowed into Venezuela’s US-run custody account from January 3 through September 30, from 20 registered depositors, a State Department report shows. Venezuela is not the two trading houses’ only government business this year. Trafigura was the largest borrower in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve’s emergency loans through June, the Navy signed three tanker charters with Trafigura Maritime Logistics in the spring, Vitol Aviation won a military fuel contract with a ceiling of $230.1 million in October and both trading houses are among the companies Bloomberg says are talking to US officials about sanctioned tankers. On our reading, each choice has a plain explanation in size and speed, and the open question is concentration. Democrats are set to take control of the House in January, which would put the Oversight Committee in the hands of the Democrat who wrote to both firms on January 29. This brief sets out the call and the licenses, what Reuters reported and what was denied, the money in the account, the reserve loans, the Navy charters and the fuel contract, the tankers in the trade, what Congress wants to know and the plain explanation.
📋 In This Issue:
🛢️ The Story:
The call and the licenses, what Reuters reported and what was denied, the money in the account, the reserve loans, the Navy charters and the fuel contract, the tankers in the trade, what Congress wants to know and the plain explanation
📊 By The Numbers:
More than $12.26 billion deposited, 20 registered depositors, 34.35 million borrowed barrels, $27.7 million in Navy charters, up to $230.1 million in military fuel and $4.1 billion in half-year profit
🌍 Why It Matters:
What it changes for the tanker owner and broker, the charterer and trader, the compliance officer and the underwriter
👀 What To Watch:
The new Congress, Trafigura’s full-year results, Treasury’s vessel decisions, the reserve repayments and the license term
🚨 Gosships Signal:
On our reading, the question is concentration, and from January the Democrat who wrote to both firms is expected to chair the Oversight Committee
