Developing Story: GUNVOR COLOMBIA SAS, a subsidiary of Gunvor, has been caught participating in a sophisticated trading scheme involving crude oil from PDVSA. The crude produced in Venezuela was exported as “residual oil” to Curacao and Panama, and then delivered to storage at Swiss Terminal (a subsidiary of SGR Energy, based in Houston) in Barranquilla. On the import side were Petroworld SAS, La Operadora SAS, and Krystal Energy SAS. Mediating between the importers, the stored crude, and Gunvor Colombia was a company called Niman Commerce SAS, identified in the criminal investigation documents as the “main supplier of crude to Gunvor Colombia SAS.” The crude was transported by Transportes Humadea on behalf of Niman to various storage sites (Vasconia and Ayacucho) before finally reaching Terminal Coveñas. From there, Gunvor exported Venezuelan crude with false descriptions and origins to the United States and other markets.
On its website, Gunvor claims to “…comply with all relevant laws and regulations wherever we operate.” There is no evidence that Gunvor obtained a license from the Treasury to trade contraband crude from PDVSA through Colombia.
Roger Arturo Gale, Hernando Silva Bickenbach, Jairo Hernan Devia Cubillos, Paola Margarita Martinez Sanchez, Hiklirs Rincones Jorio, Jose Gabriel, Javier Enrique Marquez Santos, Sergio Fortich Perez, Rafael Botello Gool, Jose Maria Marquez Jimenez, Oscar Luis Pastrana Martinez, Luis Fernando Martínez Vargas, Hernán Uzcátegui Álvarez, Andrés García Delgado, Gustavo Montoya Puyana, Carmen Pinzón Mujica, and Margarita Delgado de García along with the firms they are associated with have been identified as part of the investigation.
Intercepted phone conversations between Gale (Gunvor) and Silva (Niman) indicate that Gunvor Colombia’s director, Jaime Alejandro Hoyos Juliao, was consulted about the scheme and approved false documents. A request for comments was sent to Mr. Hoyos Juliao.
A case before the Colombian Supreme Court indicates that authorities were aware of the situation as early as mid-April 2021. Sources consulted have stated that, given the way Gunvor operates, it would be impossible for Torbjörn Törnqvist not to be aware of this scheme.