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From Nicole Jhao, Shariq Khan, Mariana Baraga, and Arathi Somasekhar

NEW YORK, Feb 14 (Reuters) - U.S. firm Valero Energy will buy up to 6.5 million barrels of Venezuelan crude oil in March to supply its Gulf Coast refineries, sources said on Friday, making it the largest foreign refiner of the OPEC member's oil since the United States arrested President Nicolas Maduro in January.

Valero was one of the first U.S. refiners to resume importing Venezuelan crude oil after Washington struck a $2 billion oil supply deal with the country’s interim government and began easing sanctions.

If Valero succeeds in purchasing 10 or more shipments next month, equivalent to about 210,000 barrels per day, it could overtake oil giant Chevron to become the largest U.S. refiner of Venezuelan crude.

This would also be the largest amount of Venezuelan crude oil processed by Valero since the United States first imposed sanctions on the country's oil sector in January 2019.

Sources told Reuters last month that Chevron, the only major U.S. company producing oil in Venezuela, is expected to increase its exports of Venezuelan crude from 220,000 barrels per day in January to around 300,000 barrels per day in March. Chevron typically refines up to half of those exports in its own refineries and sells the remainder to other U.S. refiners.

A large proportion of Chevron's sales of Venezuelan oil destined for U.S. refiners often go to Valero.

Six sources said Chevron is expected to supply Valero with most of the quantity it plans to import in March.

Valero also negotiated some shipments from trading companies, including Trafigura, which was one of the first companies Washington allowed last month to join Chevron in trading Venezuelan oil.

A shipping plan seen by Reuters indicated that Vitol had separately scheduled three shipments of naphtha for delivery to Venezuela's state-run oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), between February 22 and March 3.

The sources cautioned that the loading schedules have not yet been finalized. They spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the information.

Vitol and Trafigura declined to comment. Chevron and Petróleos de Venezuela have not yet responded to requests for comment.

A Valero spokesperson referred Reuters to comments made by CEO Randy Hawkins following the company's fourth-quarter earnings announcement on January 29. In those comments, Hawkins confirmed that Valero was in talks with approved sellers of Venezuelan oil and expected that this crude would constitute a "significant portion" of its heavy crude purchases during February and March.

Valero, which owns the second-largest refining network in the United States capable of processing Venezuelan heavy oil, entered into a long-term supply agreement to purchase crude oil from Petroleos de Venezuela before the imposition of US sanctions.

Valero's total refining capacity for Venezuelan crude oil was around 240,000 barrels per day before the expansion of its Port Arthur, Texas refinery, which has a capacity of 435,000 barrels per day, in 2023. Hawkins said the company now expects to be able to process a much larger amount of Venezuelan oil.

Increased Venezuelan exports

U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in Caracas last week that Venezuelan oil production and exports are expected to see a "sharp increase" in the coming months. The country's production reached 1 million barrels per day this month after the lifting of production cuts, while exports jumped to around 800,000 barrels per day in January.

Wright told NBC News on Thursday that total oil sales from U.S.-controlled Venezuela have reached $1 billion since Maduro's capture.

Since January, the United States has been issuing general licenses allowing the export of oil and the supply of fuel to Venezuela, as well as the provision of equipment for oil and gas production, the expansion of oil fields, and new investments.

Three sources said Valero is considering buying oil directly from Petroleos de Venezuela under the new licenses, which could help increase sales volume.

Sources told Reuters that the Venezuelan company is so far refusing to sell to companies that do not have individual U.S. licenses, due to questions about what is allowed and what is prohibited.