The Daily Journal.— The Donald Trump administration expects new investments and energy agreements between the United States and Venezuela to double Venezuelan oil production in less than five years, according to a U.S. Department of Energy fact sheet released Friday by the U.S. Embassy in Caracas.
The document presents agreements signed this week with companies such as Chevron, Eni and GE Vernova as part of a strategy to expand crude oil production, mobilize private capital and restore Venezuela’s energy infrastructure.
“These historic investments will double Venezuela’s oil production in less than five years,” the Department of Energy said, adding that the increase in supply will bring “more abundant and affordable energy” to the international market.
According to Washington, the expansion of Venezuelan production will also exert “downward pressure on global energy prices” as the United States seeks to strengthen its position in the hemisphere’s energy supply.
Chevron, Eni and GE Vernova enter a new investment phase
The fact sheet noted that Energy Secretary Chris Wright traveled to Venezuela on September 2 to oversee the signing of agreements with Chevron, Italy’s Eni and GE Vernova.
The agreements combine investments to expand oil production and modernize the country’s electricity infrastructure.
“A new era of energy investment and production is taking shape in Venezuela,” the Department of Energy said, attributing the process to President Trump’s leadership.
Washington maintains that this new phase will bring “greater prosperity and energy security to both the United States and Venezuela.”
The agreements follow the energy deal Trump announced on August 28, under which the U.S. administration said it had secured an arrangement granting the United States majority control over Venezuelan fields containing approximately 65 billion barrels of proven reserves.
According to the fact sheet, that agreement will help secure U.S. “energy dominance” for decades to come.
Rebuilding energy infrastructure
The Department of Energy described the new agreements as “another important step” in the Trump administration’s strategy to harness Venezuela’s energy resources and restore infrastructure it considers essential to increasing production.
Private-sector participation combines investments in oil exploration and production with projects to modernize electricity generation and distribution, sectors that Washington considers essential to sustaining the expansion of economic activity.
The goal of doubling Venezuelan oil production in less than five years represents one of Washington’s most ambitious targets to date since the start of the new phase of energy cooperation with Caracas.
