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US-Venezuela signs 25-year oil pact tied to $100B investment claims
The agreement targets production of more than 1.5 million barrels per day across 17 strategic fields, but critics cite secret talks and lack of competitive bidding as potential obstacles.
A US-Venezuela 25-year oil agreement giving the United States access to about a fifth of Venezuela’s crude reserves has prompted scrutiny from energy experts and lawyers over legality, transparency, and whether it can deliver promised output, Mining.com reports. The pact, announced by US President Donald Trump on social media and confirmed by Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez, covers 65 billion barrels of recoverable oil. Rodríguez said it envisages developing 17 strategic oilfields with a production target above 1.5 million barrels per day. The deal could reshape Venezuela’s oil industry and increase dependence on the US at a time when Washington already oversees much of Venezuela’s petroleum trade, according to Mining.com. But the agreement did not follow a competitive process, negotiations were kept secret until last week, and the operating structure remains unclear, raising questions about its ability to attract the investment needed for its targets.
Rodríguez said the pact complies with Venezuela’s Hydrocarbons Law and would secure $100 billion in investment and $209.3 billion in royalties and taxes, leaving Venezuela with nearly $19 from every barrel produced. Mining.com also notes the announcement follows the collapse of US-Canada trade talks, with experts warning Canadian crude could eventually compete for access to the US market on the same terms, and Trump said the Venezuela deal puts “Canada on notice.”
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