US–Venezuela oil deal outlines vast long-term stakes

President Donald Trump announced an energy agreement that gives the United States a stake or majority control in a substantial portion of Venezuela’s oil reserves. The deal is framed around long-term cooperation between the two countries and focuses on bringing more Venezuelan crude into structured commercial and strategic use for the United States.

Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodríguez said the arrangement targets development of 17 specific oil fields. She described these fields as having a proven potential of about 65 billion barrels, positioning the project as one of the largest single-country reserve partnerships involving the United States.

Reports state that the agreement relies on a newly formed private company that brings together U.S. government interests and an unnamed private operator. This company has been granted rights to the included oil fields for a very long duration, described as a 100-year term in some coverage and also characterized elsewhere as a 25-year energy deal, underscoring the long-horizon nature of the arrangement.

Coverage indicates that the United States would receive about 55% of the new company’s effective output. This share includes both an ownership stake and rights to purchase oil at cost. U.S. purchases under the arrangement are expected to be directed to the strategic petroleum reserve and to meet military needs.

Some reporting suggests that the new company could become the second-largest corporate holder of proven oil reserves after Saudi Aramco. This reflects the size of the reserves connected to the 17 Venezuelan fields and the central role the new entity would play in managing them over the lifetime of the agreement.

Delcy Rodríguez said the project could attract roughly $100 billion in investment. She also indicated it could generate more than $209 billion in tax revenue for Caracas over the life of the arrangement. These figures underline the potential fiscal importance of the deal for Venezuela’s government finances.

The scale of expected investment is tied to the need to develop and rehabilitate the targeted fields. However, reports note that it remains unclear who will provide the capital required to restore and expand Venezuela’s oil infrastructure, which has suffered from underinvestment and deterioration.

No formal text of the energy agreement has been released. News coverage emphasizes that key details are still unknown, including the precise ownership breakdown within the new company, the identity of the private operator and the specific obligations each party has for funding infrastructure and field development.

This lack of public documentation has made it difficult for outside observers to fully assess the commercial, legal and political implications of the deal. It also leaves open questions about governance, operational control and how risks and rewards will be shared over the long term.

The announcement has drawn political pushback from Democrats on Capitol Hill. Reporting cites criticism from Senator Tim Kaine and Senator Chris Van Hollen, who condemned aspects of the arrangement and raised concerns about its terms and transparency.

Energy analysts noted in coverage point to Venezuela’s dilapidated oil infrastructure and the large investment required to restore it. They argue that these constraints make a rapid increase in oil production unlikely, limiting any immediate impact on U.S. retail gasoline prices despite the deal’s large notional reserve base.