US sanctions could more than halve Venezuela’s crude production by the end of the year, hitting heavy oil joint ventures in the Orinoco Belt and fields operated solely by state company PDVSA in Lake Maracaibo and the Maturin Basin alike. PDVSA is partnered with several international oil companies in heavy crude projects in the Orinoco, ranging from the US’ Chevron to Russia’s Rosneft and China National Petroleum Corp. Together, those joint ventures produced just over half of Venezuela’s total oil output of about 1.16 million b/d in January, according to the latest S&P Global Platts OPEC survey. Output in the Orinoco, which covers roughly 19,000 square miles in central Venezuela and is divided into 36 blocks within four exploration areas, is likely to see an immediate decline of as much as 400,000 b/d due to […]