US Nears Deal to Secure Oil Concessions in Venezuela
Al Jazeera Staff
The Trump administration is negotiating to secure long-term U.S. access to Venezuela's oil reserves, with a deal potentially signed soon. The agreement, likely structured as a lease, could face legal hurdles and has drawn attention amid tighter U.S.-Venezuela ties.
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is working to reach an agreement that would secure the United States long-term access to a portion of Venezuela's crude oil reserves, according to sources from Reuters.
The deal, which could be signed and announced soon, is designed to give the U.S. government control over a group of Venezuelan oil fields developed by American companies, with the resulting oil supply guaranteed for the U.S. market. One source said: “This is a real issue and is being discussed at the highest levels of the U.S. and Venezuelan governments.”
Another source revealed that a “lease” model is being considered as the legal basis for the agreement, along with auctions or tenders to allocate each oil field to U.S. producers. The list of 17 oil fields under negotiation, obtained by Reuters, includes new fields in the vast Orinoco belt, as well as mature production areas in Lake Maracaibo. Some fields on the list are currently operated by a small Chinese company under contracts signed during the tenure of former President Nicolás Maduro.
In response to this news, the White House redirected questions to the U.S. Department of Energy. Meanwhile, Venezuela's Ministry of Petroleum, state oil company PDVSA, and the U.S. Department of Energy did not immediately respond. Venezuela's Oil Minister Paula Henao could not be reached for comment.
In a related development, Bloomberg reported on Thursday that the Caracas government is considering leaving the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) as relations with the United States tighten. Venezuela, a founding member of OPEC since 1960, has failed to meet the organization's quotas for years due to its weakened state-owned oil industry, a result of underinvestment and corruption. The U.S. has long disagreed with OPEC over its influence on oil prices.
Current hydrocarbon regulations in Venezuela, the country with the world's largest crude reserves, do not include leasing oil exploration areas, while its constitution reserves core oil industry activities for the state. However, recently reformed oil laws allow field operations through joint ventures and production-sharing contracts. The Venezuelan government has for decades prevented foreign producers from booking the country's oil reserves.
According to experts, full details of the potential deal between Washington and Caracas have not yet been made public, but the agreement could raise constitutional questions and face legal challenges.
Since the U.S. detained and removed former President Nicolás Maduro from power in January, Washington has sought to ensure a steady flow of Venezuelan crude to U.S. refineries while promoting American investment in Venezuela's neglected energy sector, which currently produces about 1.25 million barrels of crude oil per day.
The Trump administration faces pressure ahead of the November midterm elections due to high gasoline prices, which could be alleviated through cheaper oil supplies and expanded production. The U.S. is also seeking ways to replenish the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the nation's emergency oil stockpile, including the possibility of crude swaps with U.S. producers. These efforts to refill the reserve have been constrained by lack of funding and prolonged maintenance, after the reserve was drawn down following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and later after the war with Iran began in February.
