NEW YORK, Jan 3, 2026, 18:27 ET — Market closed
- U.S. forces struck Venezuela and captured President Nicolas Maduro on Saturday, Trump said.
- PBF Energy shares last traded up 5.2% on Friday after a Martinez refinery update and 2026 throughput outlook.
- Investors will watch oil-market reaction and whether an embargo tightens or reshapes Venezuelan crude flows.
PBF Energy (NYSE:PBF) shares are set to be in focus when U.S. markets reopen after the United States said it struck Venezuela and captured President Nicolas Maduro on Saturday, injecting new uncertainty into the country’s oil exports.
PBF shares last traded at $28.53, up about 5.2% from the prior close, after trading between $27.33 and $28.79 in the last session.
The shock move matters now because Venezuela’s export system has already been constrained and traders are trying to gauge whether flows tighten further or eventually normalize under a political transition. Trump said an “oil embargo” was in full effect, and sources said port captains had not cleared loaded vessels to depart.
Venezuela holds about 303 billion barrels of oil reserves — the world’s largest — but most of it is heavy crude from the Orinoco region and output has slumped after years of underinvestment and sanctions, Reuters reported. Analysts have cautioned that any rebound in production would take time even if politics shift.
Two people familiar with PDVSA operations said Venezuela’s oil production and refining were operating normally and suffered no damage from the U.S. operation, though a non-oil port near Caracas was badly hit. They said a U.S. blockade announced in December and U.S. seizures of two Venezuelan cargoes cut December exports to about half of the 950,000 barrels per day shipped in November.
Trump said major U.S. oil companies were prepared to invest billions to rebuild Venezuela’s “badly broken” oil infrastructure, an effort analysts said would still face deep operational and contractual hurdles. The American Petroleum Institute said it was monitoring the situation, while Reuters noted Chevron is the only U.S. major still operating in Venezuela.
PBF, which runs refineries in California, Delaware, Louisiana, New Jersey and Ohio, buys crude for its plants and has taken Venezuelan barrels when sanctions and licensing allowed. Reuters reported in 2023 that Chevron added PBF and Marathon Petroleum as customers for Venezuelan crude as it stepped up sales under a U.S. license.
The company also has long-running commercial links tied to Venezuela’s state oil sector. PBF bought the 189,000-barrel-per-day Chalmette, Louisiana refinery from Exxon Mobil and PDVSA in 2015 and said at the time it would keep a Venezuelan supply contract while broadening its crude slate.
Company-specific news also helped drive the stock’s latest move. PBF said on Friday it now expects rebuild activities at its Martinez, California refinery to run into February, with planned operating rates targeted by early March 2026, and it issued full-year 2026 throughput guidance.
PBF also said insurers paid a third unallocated installment of $393.5 million, bringing total insurance reimbursements received in 2025 related to the Martinez fire to $893.5 million, net of deductibles and retentions.
Oil prices ended the first trading day of 2026 slightly lower, with Brent settling at $60.75 a barrel and U.S. West Texas Intermediate at $57.32, as oversupply worries offset geopolitical risk that included Venezuela.
“Big Oil and the drillers are likely to get a bid,” Jamie Cox, managing partner at Harris Financial Group, said, adding that markets could look to the OPEC+ meeting for clearer signals. Reuters
Before the next session, traders will watch crude’s reaction as futures reopen and as investors weigh whether an embargo tightens near-term heavy crude availability or sets up a longer-term increase in Venezuelan supply. Refiners’ earnings hinge on the spread between crude costs and fuel prices; shifts in heavy-versus-light crude pricing can move those margins quickly.
PBF management is scheduled to participate in Goldman Sachs’ Energy, CleanTech & Utilities Conference on Jan. 5-7, a near-term venue for investor questions on Martinez, West Coast operations and crude sourcing.
The company is scheduled to report fourth-quarter 2025 results on Feb. 12, when investors will look for updates on Martinez ramp-up, insurance recoveries and any changes to 2026 throughput plans as Venezuela-related volatility filters into crude and product markets.
