Venezuela to tap Chinese funds

Venezuela will draw USD 2.2 billion from its credit line with China in an effort to raise production from its projects with China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), President Nicolas Maduro said late on on Thursday.

In televised address, the president said CNPC would work with PDVSA to lift output by some 277,000 bopd through increased production from Petrourica, Petrozumano and Sinovensa, all projects that CNPC holds minority stakes in alongside PDVSA. The deal also includes rehabilitation work on 500 light oil wells that –combined – could yield around 42,800 bopd.

“Many thanks for all the support you [China] have given Venezuela in 2014, 2015, and especially 2016,” Maduro said in his address. The USD 2.2 billion is drawn from a USD 9-billion facility. Over the past nine years, the country has borrowed more than USD 50 billion from China, which it partially repays through oil and fuel sales.