Vitol and Trafigura landed special licenses to sell Venezuelan oil within days of the US operation that unseated Nicolas Maduro. Reuters reports that Vitol trader John Addison, an early financier of JD Vance, got the call from US Energy Secretary Chris Wright. Vance's office and Addison deny a reported pre-invasion meeting, and the Department of Energy says it picked Vitol because of its size.
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright called Vitol trader John Addison on Jan. 5 and offered him the job of selling Venezuela's crude. The call came two days after the operation that unseated Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Within days, Vitol and rival Trafigura landed special licenses to sell the oil, and the companies have since earned hundreds of millions of dollars marketing it.
A Vance connection behind the call
Addison, 48, was a senior gasoline trader, not the firm's regional CEO, so he was not the obvious recipient. Addison told Reuters that Vance had vouched for him to Wright. A US official confirmed on condition of anonymity that Vance had described Addison to Wright as trustworthy at least a year before the call.
However, the Department of Energy said Vance and Wright never discussed Venezuelan oil sales. It said it chose Vitol because it is the largest energy and commodity trader in the world.
Addison had backed Vance financially. FEC records show he contributed $300,000 in 2022 to a political action committee supporting Vance's Ohio Senate bid.
Disputed Montana meeting
According to a person familiar with the matter, Vance and Addison met at Montana's Yellowstone Club a week before the invasion and discussed Venezuela. Both Addison and Vance's office denied the meeting took place. Flight records reviewed by Reuters show Addison's jet and Vance's plane on the same tarmac on Dec. 27.
Robert Garcia, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, sent letters to Vitol and Trafigura in January asking how they secured the licenses. Both companies told Reuters they had no advance knowledge of US military operations in Venezuela.
Traders' estimated returns
Tom Seng, a professor at Texas Christian University, estimated the traders earn between $3 and $3.50 in profit per barrel, a roughly 3.5% to 4% profit margin. Vitol's operating margins over the past three years ranged between 1% and 3%, according to a Reuters review of its annual reports. Reuters could not independently verify the estimates.
Venezuela, a member of OPEC, has exported over 200 million barrels of crude oil so far this year, according to US government data.
Source: Investing.com (Reuters)
Trading involves risk.
Risk Disclaimer
