Trump Says U.S. Oil Companies Would Rebuild Venezuela’s Struggling Industry

President Trump said the Venezuelan oil industry would “make a lot of money” if the United States supported its recovery, speaking at a news conference confirming the capture of President Nicolás Maduro, who faces U.S. federal drugs and weapons charges. Mr. Trump said U.S. oil companies would “spend billions of dollars” to repair the country’s damaged oil infrastructure and begin generating revenue for Venezuela.

He described the industry as “a total bust” that was producing far less than its potential. Venezuela claims more than 300 billion barrels of oil reserves, the largest in the world, but currently produces about one million barrels a day—roughly 1 percent of global production and well below the more than two million barrels a day it produced in the early 2010s.

The national oil company, PDVSA, lacks the capital and expertise to raise output. A study by Energy Aspects found Venezuela’s fields suffer from years of insufficient drilling, dilapidated infrastructure, frequent power cuts and equipment theft. U.S. sanctions have also limited oil exports, which now go primarily to China.

Chevron is the main Western company still operating in Venezuela and accounts for about a quarter of the country’s production. Roughly half of Chevron’s Venezuelan output is exported to the United States. The company said it was working to protect employees and operations after Mr.

Key Topics

Business, Donald Trump, Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela, Pdvsa, Chevron