One of Asia's biggest asphalt companies, Tipco Asphalt, is helping Venezuela skirt harsh U.S. sanctions by moving hundreds of millions of dollars on behalf of the state-run oil company PDVSA, according to an Associated Press investigation.
(AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe)MIAMI – Back in January, a yearlong campaign of U.S. sanctions was taking its toll at Venezuela’s state-run oil company.
Two other family members also appear to have worked at the company, according to public records.
He said the legal advice Tipco received, including from U.S. firms, never indicated it’s crude procurement from Venezuela violated sanctions.
That’s far in excess of what should’ve been a roughly $8 per barrel discount for the tar-like blend of crude, according to Venezuela’s publicly-available pricing formula for Asia.