By Misión Verdad – Mar 20, 2026Since the end of January 2026, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has issued a set of general licenses that partially modify the sanctions regime imposed on Venezuela, with a focus on the energy sector. These measures do not imply any lifting of the unilateral coercive measures, but rather a selective reconfiguration of the restrictions, primarily aimed at allowing specific operations related to oil, petrochemicals, and associated activities.Between January 29 and mid-March, a series of authorizations has taken place that, together, expand the scope of action for companies—mainly US companies or those with previous operational ties—under conditions defined by the US government.Issued licensesThe first of these measures was General License 46, issued on January 29, 2026. According to the US Treasury Department, this license authorizes “certain activities related to Venezuelan-origin oil.” In operational terms, it allows US entities to conduct transactions that were previously prohibited, provided they are “ordinary, incidental, and necessary” for the oil supply chain: extraction, export, transportation, refining, marketing, and resale of Venezuelan crude oil.The license establishes specific conditions: only US companies established before January 29, 2025, can participate, and the operations can directly involve the government of Venezuela or PDVSA as a counterparty. Additionally, it introduces financial control mechanisms, such as the obligation to report transactions and maintain traceability over payments linked to these operations.Subsequently, in early February, complementary versions, such as General License 46A, were issued, expanding on the previous framework. This authorization allows the same US entities to participate more directly in activities such as extraction, export, refining, transportation, and sale of Venezuelan oil, including operations with PDVSA. In practice, this expansion consolidates a scheme in which specific companies can re-enter various segments of the oil chain under US regulation.Thereafter, other licenses were introduced that expand the scope in the oil sector. Among them, General License 48, added to its complementary version 48A, authorizes the supply of goods and services related to the Venezuelan energy sector, including the technical and logistical support necessary for oil operations.Later, on March 13, 2026, OFAC issued a new package that includes Licenses 46B, 48A, and 49A, which broaden the relaxation in specific areas. These authorizations extend the permitted operations to petrochemical products, fertilizers, and other derivatives, in addition to enabling the negotiation of contingent contracts for investments in the country.In concrete terms, these licenses allow for transactions encompassing the export, import, storage, marketing, and transportation of oil and derivative products, such as fertilizers (urea, ammonia, nitrates), in response to international market conditions.Other specific licenses have also been issued, such as License 50, which regulates the participation of international oil companies, such as Chevron, BP, Eni, and Repsol, in the purchase of Venezuelan oil or gas under conditions established by the US Treasury. Similarly, License 49A includes the possibility of establishing conditional investment agreements, which introduces an additional component to the contractual relationship with the Venezuelan energy sector.Dynamics of OFAC Licenses for Venezuela: Managing a Sanctions RegimeA scheme of partial relaxationThe set of licenses issued between January and March 2026 shows an operational modification of the sanctions regime, focused on the energy sector and articulated through specific authorizations and not a general suspension of sanctions.The observable pattern is cumulative: each license expands the scope of the previous one by incorporating new activities or sectors within a regulated framework. This is to reactivate segments of the energy value chain (production, marketing, and associated services) without dismantling the coercive control system that remains in place.The result is a hybrid scheme in which formal sanctions and operational licenses coexist, enabling limited flows of economic activity related to Venezuela. (Misión Verdad)Translation: Orinoco TribuneOT/SC/SF