BAKU (Reuters) – Venezuela’s oil minister and president of state-run oil company PDVSA, Manuel Quevedo, said on Monday that the country may divert oil initially bound for the United States to Russia or other countries.

Speaking at a gathering of OPEC and non-OPEC oil ministers in Baku, Azerbaijan, Quevedo added that the generator at Venezuela’s primary Jose oil terminal was now working after a blackout that halted crude exports last week.

Much of Venezuela, including parts of the capital Caracas, was left without power for several days, leaving people struggling to obtain water and food.

“At the moment, (Jose) is fully functioning,” Quevedo told reporters via an interpreter.

“It has suffered a lot from the blackout… the oil industry of Venezuela suffered significantly,” he added.

Earlier this year the United States imposed heavy sanctions on Venezuela’s oil industry, looking to cut off President Nicolas Maduro’s primary source of revenue.

Quevedo said Caracas would decide where to ship its own oil and that its main goal was to strengthen ties with Russia, with which he pledged to abide by oil supply contracts.

“The contracts are being fulfilled,” he said.

“We can send the oil which has been allocated for the United States to Russia or other clients.”