200 Energy Investors Eye Venezuelan Oil as $50 Billion Rebuild Looms
Updated
Updated · CNN · Aug 2
200 Energy Investors Eye Venezuelan Oil as $50 Billion Rebuild Looms
3 articles · Updated · CNN · Aug 2
Summary
Around 200 energy executives met in London to assess investing in Venezuela’s oil sector, a push made possible after Nicolás Maduro’s January ouster and US sanctions relief.
28 million barrels of crude left Venezuela last month, up nearly 69% year on year, with more than half now heading to US refineries able to process its heavy crude.
Delcy Rodríguez’s government has loosened rules that once required PDVSA to hold majority stakes, allowing private firms to run fields directly and keep more profit.
Years of sanctions, expropriation fears, political uncertainty and June’s earthquake still cloud the opportunity, with analysts estimating $50 billion to $100 billion of investment over five to 10 years.
The London event was a prelude to October’s Venezuela Energy Week in Caracas, underscoring how quickly foreign interest has revived around the world’s largest proven oil reserves.