Caracas (AFP)

Venezuela's oil production, of which black gold has long been the source of wealth, fell in May to unprecedented levels for almost 80 years, a plunge that fueled the appalling economic crisis in the South American country.

By compiling "secondary sources" - which refer to the matter - OPEC indicates in its monthly report published Wednesday that Venezuela pumped each day in May 54,000 barrels less than in April, falling to a total of 570,000 barrels per day (b / d).

Venezuela has never produced so little since 1943. At the time, the country, subsequently a founding member of the cartel of producing countries, extracted on average 491,463 b / d, according to government figures consulted by AFP.

But this drop, spectacular as it is, is part of the slow decay process of the Venezuelan oil sector which produced 3.2 million barrels / day twelve years ago.

If the opposition around Juan Guaido puts forward a cocktail of corruption, mismanagement and incompetence to explain this fall, the Chavista power points to the range of sanctions taken by Washington against the oil sector aimed at putting the president socialist Nicolas Maduro under pressure.

Until 2018, Venezuela sent 500,000 b / d of crude oil to the United States and received from this country 120,000 b / d of light oil and additives necessary for refining. But in April 2019, the Trump administration put in place a particularly draconian Venezuelan oil embargo.

In addition, underlines the company S&P Global Platts, Caracas had to reduce its crude production in recent weeks due to "storage limitation" and the "lack of light oil" to thin the extra heavy crude and make it transportable.

In March, faced with a lack of liquidity essential to obtain gasoline abroad, Venezuela broke down. The country has experienced a fuel shortage that only the arrival of five Iranian oil tankers loaded with 1.5 million barrels of fuel has managed to make up for. For the time being.

- "Rent is over" -

The lack of oil only "worsens the recession," observes economist José Manuel Puente. With an economy that has shrunk by half in seven years, drug and gasoline shortages and hyperinflation of more than 9,000% in 2019, Venezuela is facing the worst crisis in its recent history.

Venezuela "is on the verge of collapse," warns Mr. Puente.

However, the oil windfall was still the pride of Venezuela which prides itself on having the largest proven reserves in the world. Black gold brought him $ 750 billion between 2004 and 2015.

And the posts of Minister of Petroleum and boss of the public oil company PDVSA are among the most important in the Chavista political system. Nicolas Maduro has recently appointed Tareck El Aissami, a man of confidence, to the ministry and Asdrubal Chavez, a cousin of the late president Hugo Chavez (1999-2013), at the head of PDVSA.

But "the rent is over," says Carlos Mendoza Potella, economist at the Central Bank of Venezuela. Besides, he continues, what is the point of having the largest oil reserves "if we cannot take advantage of it?".

And a recovery in the oil sector seems unlikely in the short or even medium term. Carried away in the global downward spiral, the prices of Venezuelan crude collapsed at the same time as the drop in demand due to the Covid-19 health crisis.

By April 24, a barrel of Venezuelan oil was worth only $ 9.9, a drop in twenty years. It then rose to $ 13.45 on May 1. Since this date, the Ministry of Petroleum no longer publishes figures.

For economist José Manuel Puente, the only salvation lies in opening up to the private sector, a taboo until now. "We can't do it alone. We don't have the technology, the financial resources, or the human resources," he said.

© 2020 AFP