US oil majors signal readiness to invest in Venezuela

Washington, Jan 10 (IANS) Top executives from major US and international oil companies signaled readiness to invest billions of dollars in Venezuela’s oil sector, citing new security guarantees and political backing from the Trump administration as key conditions for reentry.

Speaking at a White House meeting chaired by President Donald Trump, leaders from Chevron, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips and other firms described Venezuela as a long-term opportunity following years of decline caused by sanctions and infrastructure decay.

Chevron Vice Chairman Mark Nelson said the company already maintained a substantial presence in Venezuela and could rapidly expand operations.

“Today Chevron has 3,000 employees in four different joint ventures in Venezuela,” Nelson said, adding that production had increased from roughly 40,000 barrels per day to 240,000 barrels per day.

He said Chevron could “increase our liftings from those joint ventures, 100 percent essentially effective immediately,” with further increases possible within 18 to 24 months.

ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods said Venezuela represented a major resource opportunity but stressed that legal and commercial reforms were essential.

“If we look at the legal and commercial constructs and frameworks in place today in Venezuela today, it’s uninvestable,” Woods said.

He said ExxonMobil was prepared to deploy a technical assessment team within weeks if invited.

“We think it’s absolutely critical in the short term that we get a technical team in place to assess the current state of the industry,” Woods said.

ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance said Trump’s approach of using energy investment rather than prolonged conflict offered a new path forward.

“I think you’ve given hope to the people of Venezuela again,” Lance said.

Halliburton CEO Jeff Miller said the company, which exited Venezuela in 2019 due to sanctions, was eager to return.

“600 Venezuelans with Halliburton today all around the world look forward to putting them back to work,” he said.

Trump told executives that participating firms would receive robust security guarantees.

“They will have those guarantees, yes,” he said.

Several executives said long-term stability and durable investment protections would determine the pace and scale of investment.

Venezuela once ranked among the world’s largest oil producers but has seen output collapse over the past decade due to sanctions, mismanagement and lack of capital investment.