US president Donald Trump said today that oil companies will invest at least $100bn to rebuild Venezuela's oil and gas infrastructure. His comments on social media platform Truth Social come ahead of a meeting with industry executives at the White House on Friday.
"At least 100 Billion Dollars will be invested by BIG OIL, all of whom I will be meeting with today at The White House," Trump said.
Trump added that the US and Venezuela are "working well together, especially as it pertains to rebuilding, in a much bigger, better, and more modern form, oil and gas infrastructure". He also praised Venezuela's release of large numbers of political prisoners as a sign of "Seeking Peace", calling it a "very important and smart gesture."
That co-operation has led to the cancellation of a previously anticipated second wave of military action, he said.
The $100bn figure aligns with past estimates from Venezuelan opposition plans, which put minimum capital needs at that level to restore output to pre-sanctions levels of around 1.2mn b/d, and significantly more to approach historic peaks near 3mn b/d.
Industry enthusiasm is mixed, according to Treasury secretary Scott Bessent. "The big oil companies who move slowly, who have corporate boards are not interested," Bessent said on Thursday. But "independent oil companies and individuals wildcatters... want to get to Venezuela yesterday," he said.
Reviving Venezuelan production will require costly repairs to pipelines, power supplies and other basic infrastructure, as well as security guarantees and a stable business environment.
