By Micah Jonah
January 12, 2026
Major U.S. and European oil companies have cautioned against overly optimistic expectations for U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan to rapidly inject billions of dollars into Venezuela’s oil sector, citing significant legal, security, and commercial hurdles.
The White House hosted a meeting on January 9, 2026, with executives from ExxonMobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, and other global oil giants, just days after Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro was ousted.
While the meeting projected urgency and support, industry leaders stressed that Venezuela’s oil industry remains “un-investible” under current conditions.
ExxonMobil CEO, Darren Woods highlighted that decades of nationalization, corruption, and sanctions have left Venezuela with unresolved debts and risky investment conditions.
Chevron’s Vice Chairman, Mark Nelson said that under existing operations, Chevron could increase production by 50% over two years, but major expansion would require structural reforms and legal guarantees. Spanish firm Repsol also indicated potential for a tripling of output, but only over several years.
Analysts note that unlocking Venezuela’s vast oil reserves, mostly heavy crude, would demand changes to fiscal policies, joint venture rules, and PDVSA’s monopoly on marketing oil. Further, outstanding debts to international oil service providers pose a challenge, with some companies still owed billions from past nationalizations.
The Trump administration has considered lifting some sanctions to facilitate investment, but company executive warned that verbal assurances alone will not suffice to attract the billions needed to revive Venezuela’s oil production to previous levels of over 3.5 million barrels per day.
Ron Bousso, Reuters Energy Columnist, commented that while short-term production increases are possible, meaningful growth requires long-term legal and economic stability. Without these, Venezuela’s ambitions to restore its oil industry face serious constraints despite U.S. support.
The meeting underscores the tension between political ambitions and the practical realities of reviving one of the world’s largest oil reserves. Concrete reforms and credible guarantees will be critical for any substantial recovery of Venezuela’s oil sector.
