The first batch of Venezuelan oil arrived at an oil refinery in Belarus on Sunday under agreements reached between the presidents of both countries.
A total of 4,400 metric tons (32,000 barrels) of crude were delivered by railway to the Mozyr refinery in Belarus.
The agreements on the supply of up to 80,000 barrels of crude oil per day to Belarus were reached in March at a meeting between Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez in Caracas.
The first tanker loaded with crude oil for Belarus set off from Venezuela on April 2.
Oil is shipped to the Ukrainian Black Sea port of Odessa, from which it is delivered to Belarus by rail.
Some experts say the transportation of Venezuelan oil to Belarus is an unprofitable project while the Belarusian government believes the project is advantageous for the ex-Soviet republic.
Belarus has little hydrocarbon resources and depends on fuel supplies from Russia. Early this year the two ex-Soviet neighbors were involved in a dispute over oil supplies, as Moscow demanded Minsk pay full import duties on crude its refines and transits to Europe, dropping considerable subsidies.
MINSK, May 2 (RIA Novosti)
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