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Washington plans to manage Venezuelan crude sales indefinitely as production struggles and foreign operators limit investment
The United States will control Venezuela’s oil exports and the revenue generated from those sales indefinitely, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Wednesday, outlining the clearest strategy yet for how Washington intends to manage the South American country’s most valuable resource following years of sanctions and industry decline.
Speaking publicly at a Goldman Sachs energy conference in Miami, Wright said the U.S. government would oversee the flow, sale, and proceeds of Venezuelan crude, with revenues deposited into accounts controlled by the U.S. and later directed back to Venezuela for the benefit of its population. He said the initial volumes would come from crude currently held in storage, before expanding to ongoing production.
Wright said the U.S. would market Venezuelan oil on global crude markets on an ongoing basis, framing the approach as a way to restore supply while maintaining leverage over political and economic reforms. He emphasized that the oil was not being seized, but rather sold on Venezuela’s behalf under U.S. supervision.
President Donald Trump said Venezuela would turn over 30 million to 50 million barrels of crude for U.S.-managed sales, a volume valued at roughly $2.8 billion at current prices. White House officials confirmed that the U.S. has already begun marketing Venezuelan barrels, with proceeds placed in U.S. Treasury-controlled accounts.
Sanctions, storage constraints and declining output
Venezuela’s oil sector has been crippled by years of underinvestment, corruption and U.S. sanctions, leaving production below 1 million barrels per day, down from a peak of 3.5 million bpd in the late 1990s, according to industry data cited by CNBC.
According to Bloomberg, oil production is now concentrated in a handful of areas, primarily the Orinoco Oil Belt, with limited output in western fields near Lake Maracaibo. The news outlet also highlights that foreign companies still operating in Venezuela account for a disproportionate share of current production, despite holding back on new investment.
Chevron’s joint ventures in the Orinoco region account for roughly 12.5% of Venezuela’s total output, while its Boscan field represents about 10%, according to PDVSA data cited by Bloomberg. China’s Sinovensa venture and Russian-linked assets taken over after Rosneft exited in 2020 also remain part of the production mix.
U.S. oil companies urged to rebuild infrastructure
The Trump administration is urging U.S. energy companies to help rebuild Venezuela’s degraded oil infrastructure, while selectively rolling back sanctions to allow exports and limited equipment imports, according to the Energy Department.
Wright described Venezuela’s energy system as severely degraded, saying decades of neglect had affected not just oil production but also the country’s electricity grid. He said U.S. leverage over oil sales was necessary to prevent further collapse, stabilize production and create conditions for growth.
The Energy Secretary estimated that Venezuelan output could increase by several hundred thousand barrels per day in the short to medium term, though restoring the industry to historic levels would require around $10 billion per year over the next decade, based on estimates from Rice University’s Baker Institute.
Chevron remains the only U.S. major on the ground
Chevron is currently the only U.S. oil major operating in Venezuela, exporting about 140,000 bpd in late 2025, according to Kpler data cited by CNBC. Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhillips exited the country after nationalizations under former President Hugo Chávez and still hold billions of dollars in arbitration claims against Caracas.
Wright publicly said compensation for those claims would be a long-term issue and that proceeds from near-term oil sales would not initially be used to repay those companies.
Venezuela’s state oil company PDVSA said it is in talks with Washington over crude sales under a framework similar to Chevron’s current arrangement, Bloomberg reported.
Market and geopolitical implications
Global oil prices fell about 1.5% on Wednesday to near $60 a barrel, as markets digested the potential return of Venezuelan barrels under U.S. control. Analysts caution that sustained production growth will depend on political stability, security conditions and long-term policy support beyond the current administration.
According to ABC News, Wright said some sanctions may be eased to allow the import of critical equipment and services, but stressed that capital would only return if structural changes are successfully implemented.
Written by: João Fernando
