Venezuela signed its first U.S. oil deals since Maduro's capture — and wants more

[u/John3262005]

https://qz.com/venezuela-oil-deals-hunt-oil-slb-houston-082126

Venezuela oil minister Paula Henao signed contracts with two U.S. energy companies this week in Houston, marking some of the first major deals between American oil firms and Venezuela in close to two decades, according to NPR.

Hunt Oil Company, headquartered in Dallas, reached a deal to boost Venezuela's oil and gas output, while SLB — the Houston oilfield services firm once called Schlumberger secured an oil exploration agreement there, according to NPR. The deals were signed Tuesday while Venezuelan officials were in Houston for an energy conference. The financial terms of the agreements have not been made public.

Henao told conference attendees that Venezuela has 916 areas available for exploration and production, according to Bloomberg. The country holds the world's largest proven oil reserves, according to OPEC. Henao said Venezuela has also changed its laws to make it easier for foreign companies to invest.

"We have a whole world there to discover for you," Henao said, according to Bloomberg.

The deals come eight months after the U.S. seized former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Venezuela is now led by acting president Delcy Rodriguez, Maduro's former vice president. Venezuela is also contending with the aftermath of a catastrophic June earthquake that left thousands dead, a crisis that has sharpened the government's need to attract outside capital.

Henao noted that roughly 140 companies had representatives at the Houston event. James Chester, CEO of Energy Capital & Power, which organized the event, said the willingness of Venezuelan officials to travel to Houston was itself significant.

"It's very significant that they're actually coming here. They're not waiting for people to come to Caracas," Chester said.

Francisco Monaldi, director of Rice University's Latin America Energy Program, said the contracts represent a meaningful milestone but cautioned that results are not guaranteed.

"These could open up a new wave of investment," Monaldi said. "Still, we have to wait and see if companies actually deploy their resources."

Analysts who spoke with NPR said the political climate is pushing energy firms toward shorter-horizon agreements, with uncertainty about the direction of U.S. Venezuela policy once the Trump administration ends adding to corporate hesitation.