Venezuela’s oil production fell 72,000 barrels per day (bpd) in the third quarter of the year compared to the previous period, a drop of 9%, according to data collected in the report of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries released this Wednesday.
Between July and September, Venezuela produced an average of 673,000 bpd, while between April and June it had pumped an average of 745,000 bpd.
Oil pumping in September averaged 666,000 bpd, that is, 57,000 bpd less compared to August, when it stood at 723,000 bpd, always according to the OPEC report, which reflects the figures reported by the Caribbean country.
With these data, Venezuela continues to move away from the oil goal set by Nicholas Maduro to pump 2 million bpd by the end of 2022 and 3 million by 2023.
The oil country produced 3.2 million bpd in 1997, when Chavismo had not yet come to power, and for the following 20 years it remained above 2 million.
But the Venezuelan oil industry, after having been one of the strongest in the world, collapsed, especially in the last five years, due to lack of investment, the reduction of qualified human resources, management, corruption and , more recently, the sanctions imposed by the United States, according to specialists in the sector.
