OFFICIAL STATEMENT

Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A (PDVSA) rejects accusation by the Federative Republic of Brazil which pretends to politicize and hold responsible to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela for the oil traces that are impacting Brazil’s northern coasts since September 2019.
Statements made by Mr. Ricardo Salles, Brazilian Minister of Environment evidence little interest in the environment protection measures by the Government of the Federative Republic of Brazil, both in its coasts as in the rest of the Brazilian natural ecosystem.
Statements made by high-leveled officers from the Brazilian government tend to manipulate information and have a strong political seal in order to attack the government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela before international organizations of which it is not a member.
PDVSA informs national and international public opinion not to have received any support request to determine whether the oil detected really corresponds to any commercial segregation of crude oil exported by Venezuela. That is the reason why it is hard to believe any kind of opinion or unilateral analysis based upon biased and irresponsible results.
The Venezuela oil industry counts on qualified staff, technology and material resources which are at Brazil’s government disposal to cooperate and determine the real origin of the oil crude found in its northern coast.
We regret that such an event pretends to be distorted of the environmental context to become a political matter, with the intention of incriminate Venezuela and get away from the core subject that is the preservation of the environment and renewable and non-renewable resources. It must be highlighted that, according to a hydrographic study made by Venezuelan Bolivarian Army, it is unlikely that such crude oil comes from Venezuelan territory by virtue of the marine currents in that area.
The closest oil national area (Gulf of Paria) is located 2 thousand 500 hundred kilometers from Maranhao state, northern Brazil, and that region has the influence of Brazil’s northern displacement upwards, south-north direction, with speeds of 0.3 to 0.7 knocks, which makes impossible that any crude oil spot moves towards the affect ted area in the opposite direction.
Likewise, either if it is crude oil or products exported by our country and traded by PDVSA to any of our customers, we request the identification of the tanker responsible of such an action, with the view to start investigations from the corresponding instances and punish the ones responsible of any infraction or offence if it be the case.
PDVSA reaffirms its commitment with life preservation in mother earth, a historic objective contemplated in our Constitution and in the Law of the Homeland Plan 2019-2025 and rejects politicization of this type of event.

Caracas, October 24th, 2019