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Update: US Energy Secretary Says 17 Million Barrels Crossed Hormuz Monday, Bessent Signals Iran Isolation

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(Updates with US Department of Energy's email response in paragraphs 3 and 6-7.)

Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Monday marked a record flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz since the conflict began, with over 17 million barrels shipped, according to a CNBC interview clipped and shared by the White House's Rapid Response account on X on Wednesday.

"Monday was our record ever since the conflict began - over 17 million barrels of oil flowed through the Strait of Hormuz on ships on Monday; if you add the bypass export pipelines, more than left the region in the pre-conflict," Wright said.

In response to' request for comment, Ben Dietderich, US Department of Energy Spokesperson, clarified that Wright was referring to both oil and oil products when discussing volumes leaving the Strait of Hormuz.

On Venezuela, Wright said current oil production now exceeds 1.2 million barrels per day and could top 1.5 million b/d during the first half of next year.

"I think we'll be well over 1.5 million b/d by the first half of next year - and Venezuelan production will be over 2 million b/d by the end of this decade," Wright said in the CNBC interview.

Dietderich said Wright was in Venezuela at present. "Today in Caracas, Venezuela, Secretary Wright is overseeing the signing of several multi-billion dollar oil, gas and electricity deals," Dietderich said.

The contracts will more than double Venezuela's oil production in less than five years and modernize its grid, Dietderich said, adding that the deals are between Venezuela and Chevron (CVX), Eni (E) and GE Vernova.

Separately, Wright told Bloomberg in an interview on Wednesday that Venezuela's rising output could benefit US refiners because many facilities rely on crude grades similar to the country's oil, making the increase a major gain for US energy buyers, according to a post on Rapid Response.

Meanwhile, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday that the US plans to cut Iran's external connections, signaling a broad effort to isolate Tehran, according to a Fox News interview shared by the White House's Rapid Response X account.

"We are going to sever every tie that [Iran] has to the outside world... This is all hands on deck," Bessent said.

The US Department of the Treasury did not immediately reply to' request for comment.

Price: $55.51, Change: $-0.02, Percent Change: -0.04%

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