Oil Company Says It Was Granted OFAC License for Venezuela Activities

Maurel & Prom received a specific license from the Office of Foreign Assets Control that authorizes certain activities involving Venezuela’s state-owned energy company Petroleos de Venezuela, the Paris-headquartered oil company announced May 6.

M&P said the license authorizes activities “in relation to its 40% consolidated interest in the mixed company Petroregional del Lago,” whose parent company is PdVSA and which operates the Urdaneta Oeste field in Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela. M&P said it will be able to “continue operating pursuant to the set of agreements” it signed with PdVSA last year.

The company said it applied for the license Sept. 1 and was granted it May 3, allowing “U.S. entities and banks to engage with M&P with regards to its activities in Venezuela.” The license expires May 31, 2026, and M&P said it “expects it will be renewed.”

The announcement came less than a month after the Biden administration said it planned to allow an OFAC general license for transactions with PdVSA to expire after a 45-day wind-down period (see 2404170070). OFAC said it would consider, on a case-by-case basis, requests for specific licenses to continue activities beyond the wind-down period.

“This is excellent news for M&P, as it gives us clear visibility for the future,” CEO Olivier de Langavant said. “The Urdaneta Oeste field is a great asset with substantial potential, and this license will allow us to develop it in a planned and responsible manner.”