Venezuela’s national oil company Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) on Saturday said that after a leak in a pipeline, the oil has washed up to the country’s west coast. The leaked pipeline takes crude to the country’s main refinery.

The spill has spread over more than 13 kilometres according to the environmental commission of the opposition-majority national parliament.

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Despite having the largest proven oil reserves in the world, Venezuela suffers fuel shortages because only a limited number of its refineries are presently functioning.

PDVSA says it has carried out “sanitization” work in the majorly affected areas of the northwestern state of Falcon after the leak was discovered.

The company added that the state’s Paraguana refinery, which has a capacity of 950,000 barrels per day, remained unaffected.

The commission reported that in August, a spill washed up on four kilometres of national park beaches that are also located in the state of Falcon.

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Notably, the oil industry fueled Venezuela’s economic emergence a little over a century ago and is a major source of revenue.

Although, production has slipped from 2.3 million barrels per day twelve years ago to less than 400,000 in July this year.

The socialist government of Nicolas Maduro has said US sanctions are responsible for the plunge, but analysts and the opposition say corruption and negligence of those in charge in the oil sector are to blame.