U.S. makes transaction of the decade – To have control of more than 65 billion barrels of Venezuela’s oil reserves

The United States has reached an oil deal with Venezuela that will give it majority control of more than 65 billion barrels of the country’s proven reserves, US President Donald Trump said this weekend.

“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,” Trump wrote on the social network “Truth Social”, Reuters reported.

Trump said the deal would more than double U.S. oil reserves.

Oil at cost

A U.S. official said the U.S. would control 55% of the joint venture’s effective production and receive oil at cost.

Rodriguez confirmed the deal in a post on Telegram, calling it “historic.”

According to her, the oil projects covered by the deal will generate USD 209 billion in taxes.

She said the deal covered 17 strategic fields with a total of 65 billion barrels of proven reserves, but did not specify what the U.S. and Venezuelan shares would be.

According to the report, the deal could create the world’s second-largest private oil company by reserves and secure U.S. oil supplies for decades.

Venezuela currently produces about 1.25 million barrels of crude oil per day, compared with 1.16 million barrels per day in July, according to a Bloomberg survey.

Washington is also looking at ways to replenish its strategic oil reserves, including the possibility of swapping crude oil with U.S. producers.

Economists skeptical

The Trump administration is also facing pressure from rising gasoline prices ahead of November’s midterm elections, while cheaper supplies and increased production could ease that pressure.

The deal follows U.S. moves toward Venezuela, including the ouster of President Nicolas Maduro in January, the seizure of Venezuelan oil tankers and attacks on multiple ships said to be carrying drugs from Venezuela, which have killed more than 200 people.

But the plan could face legal challenges and political upheaval in Washington, experts say.

Chris Kennedy, chief economist at Bloomberg Economics, said the Trump administration’s push to secure a stake in Venezuela’s oil reserves could be counterproductive to long-term investment in the industry because of the political risk it carried.

Unprecedented agreement

The announcement of the agreement sparked negative reactions on social media.

Some Venezuelans accused Rodriguez of “giving away” the country’s oil, while others criticized the agreement’s lack of mention of a democratic transition and a timetable for elections.

Chevron Corporation, the only U.S. company currently producing oil in Venezuela, declined to comment on the agreement, as did ExxonMobil.

Alejandro Velasco, an associate professor at New York University, called the agreement “completely unprecedented” and said Venezuela “risks becoming a playground of U.S. capitalism.”

Donald Trump

Delcy Rodriguez

Chevron

ExxonMobil

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