Venezuela sends first crude oil shipment to Israel since 2020

Venezuela is sending crude oil to Israel for the first time since 2020. The delivery comes after the United States (U.S.) captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Operation Absolute Resolve on January 3, 2026.

Sources with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg on condition of anonymity that the shipment is being delivered to Bazan Group, also known as Oil Refineries Ltd, the top crude processor of Israel.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the Venezuelan Foreign Minister Miguel Pérez Pirela dismissed the report as false. He posted a snapshot of a Bloomberg article with “FAKE” stamped on it.

Israel has always remained secretive about its crude oil deals as it has never publicly named the companies and countries it gets its crude oil from. Tankers disappear from the digital tracking systems as soon as they near the Mediterranean country’s ports.

If confirmed, it would mark the first delivery from the South American country to Israel since 2020. 

According to Kpler data, Israel received 470,000 barrels of crude oil from Venezuela in 2020, since then most of the supply was sold to China.

Following the capture of Maduro, the United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump announced that U.S. oil firms will be investing billions of dollars in the Venezuelan oil sector, adding that they would drill and sell oil with ease.