President Trump confirmed late Friday that the U.S. reached a deal with Venezuela to secure control of a big chunk of the Latin American country's oil reserves.
"At my direction, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, working closely with Highly Respected Interim President of Venezuela, Delcy Rodriguez, and, through a partnership with private business, have secured majority U.S. control of more than 65 BILLION BARRELS of proven Oil Reserves in Venezuela, at no cost to the American Taxpayer," the president said on social media.
The deal would give the U.S. a foothold in some of Venezuela's most promising oil-and-gas fields. The country says it has some 300 billion barrels of proven reserves, the largest in the world. In comparison, the U.S. has about 46 billion.
Trump also said the agreement would substantially lower gas prices for all Americans. He and his team have been trying to shore up energy security in the Western Hemisphere while the Iran war has locked a big portion of the world's oil and gas behind the Strait of Hormuz.
The details
The country's oil industry has fallen into widespread disarray following years of mismanagement during the regimes of the late Hugo Chávez and former President Nicolás Maduro.
The deal with Venezuela is expected to pave the way for independent U.S. energy producers to become involved in oil production in the country, but it isn't yet clear how such an arrangement would work.
One of the options previously discussed would see the U.S. would create joint ventures with private companies. Another would require the U.S. to hire companies to work the oil fields, people close to the situation said.
Direct U.S. involvement in foreign oil production is rare. During World War II, the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt created a state company to get foreign reserves and sought to buy a U.S. company that had concessions in Saudi Arabia. But the effort ultimately failed.
The context
Friday's deal could help reassure American companies that are on the fence about gambling capital there following Maduro's ouster in January
Chevron is nearing a deal to make a big investment in Venezuela's oil fields, The Wall Street Journal reported earlier Friday. But many others, including ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, have been hesitant.
Some companies have said they would need security guarantees and an overhaul of the country's legal and commercial framework to consider diving in. Venezuela's oil production has been slow to ramp up since the U.S. ousted Maduro. It is pumping about 1.1 million barrels a day, roughly in line with last year's figures.
The reaction
News of the talks caused an outcry among some in Venezuela's opposition who have been pushing for the U.S. to pressure Rodríguez to hold elections. The Trump administration has played a major role in overseeing Venezuela's oil industry since ousting Maduro and replacing him with Rodríguez.
"An illegitimate interim government with an illegitimate hydrocarbons law has no legitimacy to strike this unconstitutional deal," Ricardo Hausmann, a Harvard University economist and former government official in Venezuela, wrote on X. "It will be a fiasco for all involved, starting with [Secretary of State Marco Rubio]."
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