Chevron to Invest $7Bn in Venezuela

• United States (U.S.) oil giant Chevron has confirmed that it will significantly expand its operations in Venezuela, with plans to more than double production in the country over the next five years through a US$7Bn joint venture.
• The oil company, the second-largest in the U.S., said on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, that it has been assigned additional acreage in the Orinoco Belt, where it already holds an established position as Venezuela’s largest private oil producer. Chevron’s target of producing 600,000 barrels per day, at total costs of less than $20 per barrel, would represent more than half of Venezuela’s current output, The New York Times reported.
• The announcement comes five days after President Donald Trump said the U.S. had reached a separate agreement to take majority control of a significant portion of Venezuela’s oil reserves, which he said would more than double U.S. oil reserves.
• The latest expansion broadens Chevron’s footprint in Venezuela’s Orinoco Belt, with its 49%-owned Petroindependencia joint venture gaining rights to develop the adjacent Carabobo-1 and Carabobo-2-South-A areas, building on the April agreement that increased Chevron’s interest in the venture and added rights to the Ayacucho 8 area. The additional acreage supports further development of the company’s extra-heavy oil operations, with production across its three Venezuelan joint ventures already up 15% year-to-date.

(Source: Yahoo Finance)