OREANDA-NEWS At least nine tankers delivered 3.19 million barrels oil and petroleum products of Russian origin to US ports for the week from February 23 to March 1, said in a note to customers Investbank Caracas Capital Markets. The Bank specializes in Venezuela: it notes that the increased supply of Russian oil products to the United States is a consequence of the "adaptation of US markets to the loss of Venezuelan oil."

Mainly Russian supplies for the last week of February are naphtha and fuel oil. Tankers went to the United States including from Novorossiysk and St. Petersburg, writes Caracas Capital, referring to the American database on bills of lading (shipping documents).

3.19 million barrels "is the largest volumes from Russia that we have seen since 2011," said Russ Dellen, managing partner of Caracas Capital. "Ironically, the Russians benefit from the collapse of Venezuela: one hostile sub — banking country replaces another hostile sub-banking country in supplies to the United States," he argues.

In November 2018 (latest available data), imports of Russian oil and petroleum products to the United States amounted to 254 thousand barrels per day, or about 1.8 million barrels per week. This was 2.8% of the total imports of oil and petroleum products to the United States.

According to Caracas Capital, in the week (March 1) only one tanker delivered oil to the US directly from Venezuela. Oil imports from Venezuela last week fell to 83 thousand barrels per day compared to 587 thousand barrels on the day of the end of January, the U.S. energy information Administration reported on March 6. The retired volumes of Venezuela replaced the doubled supplies from Mexico and Saudi Arabia (respectively, to 915 thousand and 697 thousand barrels. per day.) The Department does not provide data on oil supplies from Russia.

American customers have time until April 28, 2019 to import Venezuelan oil without fear of sanctions, follows from the explanations of the US Treasury. But since payments for this oil should be sent to a Bank account in the US for blocked funds, Venezuela has little incentive to continue supplies.

Russia supplies petroleum products to Venezuela, Bloomberg reported on March 5. According to the Agency, which refers to its sources, "Rosneft" for the first time since the introduction of sanctions against the Venezuelan state-owned company PDVSA in late January sent a batch of heavy naphtha to Venezuela. This product is needed to dilute the viscous Venezuelan oil so that it can move through pipelines to the coast for export. Two tankers ordered by Rosneft, Serengeti and Abliani, to bring together 1 million barrels petroleum products to Venezuela from Europe.