On 18 October the United States Office of Financial Control (OFAC) issued four general licences in relation to the United States’ Venezuela-related sanctions including General Licence (GL) 44, temporarily authorising transactions related to oil or gas sector operations in Venezuela.
GL 44 suspends Venezuela-related sanctions applicable to most oil and gas sector operations in Venezuela, including the sale of oil and gas from Venezuela to the United States and other jurisdictions, as well as the payment of taxes, royalties, costs, fees, dividends and profits related to oil and gas sector operations or transactions involving Petroleos de Venezuela (PdVSA).
GL 44 provides a non-exhaustive list of transactions covered by the authorisation, including:
- the production, lifting, sale and exportation of oil or gas from Venezuela, and provision of related goods and services;
- the payment of invoices for goods or services related to oil or gas sector operations in Venezuela;
- new investment in oil or gas sector operations in Venezuela; and
- the delivery of oil and gas from Venezuela to creditors of the Government of Venezuela, including creditors of PdVSA entities, for the purposes of debt repayment. The licence expires on 18 April 2024.
Several key prohibitions remain in place including Russian-related transactions and transactions involving Bancero de Venezuela or Banco de Venezuela SA Banco Universal.
GL 44 and associated FAQ are available from OFAC.
Source: https://www.intertanko.com/search-article/articleview/venezuelan-sanctions-update