Halliburton follows Chevron in halting Venezuelan operations

(Reuters) – Oilfield services provider Halliburton Co said on Friday it would cease most of its operations in Venezuela after the U.S. Treasury Department imposed tight new regulations on oil and gas companies doing business in the South American nation.

Seeking to increase pressure on socialist President Nicolas Maduro, the U.S. Treasury late on Tuesday imposed restrictions on Chevron Corp’s joint ventures with Venezuelan state-run oil company PDVSA.

The new restrictions effectively told Chevron, Halliburton, Schlumberger and others to wind down their activity in Venezuela by December.

The new restrictions under a license that allowed Chevron and Halliburton to conduct business in the country include a ban on drilling, transporting oil or providing any equipments for use in Venezuela.

Both Chevron and Halliburton had already halted many activities and Halliburton said the decision will not have a material impact on its financial condition.

The company said in a regulatory filing https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/45012/000004501220000059/hal-20200331.htm it is unlikely that its remaining assets in Venezuela could be removed from the country and it may have to dispose them.

(Reporting by Shariq Khan in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)