United States involvement in the Venezuelan oil industry

constructed a refinery on the nearby island of Curaçao, a Dutch colony, where Venezuelan oil could be processed and then shipped internationally. Despite some initial resistance from the Gómez government, making Venezuela second in total output, only behind the United States. Shell, Gulf Oil and Exxon account for 99 percent of the total oil production during Gómez's reign. During the global depression, there was a nearly 20 percent decrease in Venezuelan oil exports. == Increased government royalties and nationalization (1943–1976) ==

Hydrocarbon Law of 1943 In 1943, President Isaias Medina Angarita issued the Hydrocarbon Law of 1943, replacing much of the previous 1922 legislation. While many United States presidents during the period agreed with the premise of reducing imports of oil, such as from Venezuela, import of foreign oil only increased. ==Economic crises and presidency of Hugo Chávez (1980–2013) ==

Second presidency of Pérez During the 1980s oil glut, oil prices began to decrease significantly. Oil demand dropped during the period, in part due to increased energy production from sources other than oil, such as nuclear power and natural gas. The United States' Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 caused passenger car fuel efficiency to rise by more than 50 percent, again reducing American demand for petroleum. This severely impacted the oil-dominant economy of Venezuela; four out of five Venezuelans lived in poverty by 1992. Pérez, in his second presidency, decided to respond to the debt, public spending, economic restrictions and rentier state by privatizing the economy. In 1992, Pérez declared interest in privatization of the petroleum industry, with American companies such as Conoco and Mobil beginning negotiations almost immediately. Hugo Chávez carried out many social and economic changes in Venezuela, which altered the nature of the petroleum industry and lead ultimately to a change in Venezuelan-American relations. Chávez returned to a "sowing the oil" economic plan reminiscent of earlier Venezuelan administrations, intending to move income from oil into social programs and greater industralization of Venezuela. As of 2006, Venezuela was one of the largest suppliers of oil to the United States, sending about to the U.S. 2007 Expropriations In 2007, PDVSA bought 82% percent of Electricidad de Caracas company from AES Corporation as part of a renationalization program. Subsequently, the ownership share rose to 93.62% by December 2008. Assets of ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips were expropriated in 2007 after they declined to restructure their holdings in Venezuela to give PDVSA majority control; Total, Chevron, Statoil and BP agreed and retained minority shares in their Venezuelan projects. As of 2026, Exxon and Conoco still have billions of dollars in outstanding claims, with Exxon fighting to reclaim their losses in international court as early as 2008. == United States sanctions (2014–2025) ==

, over 110 Venezuleans were put under sanction by the United States, including President Maduro. In 2014, the United States Congress passed an act requiring the president to impose sanctions on those "identified as responsible for acts of violence, serious human rights abuse, or antidemocratic actions", according to the US Congressional Review Service. As of 2021, this had led to 28 individuals being charged, with 22 pleading guilty. Sanctions during the first Trump administration During the Venezuelan crisis, President Donald Trump imposed sanctions that affected Venezuela's petroleum industry. In August 2017, the U.S. government imposed economic sanctions against the petroleum industry by prohibiting the trading of Venezuelan bonds on U.S. markets. In January 2019, the U.S. imposed additional sanctions on PDVSA in an effort to pressure President Nicolás Maduro to step down during the 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis. Citgo Temporary lifting of sanctions In October 2023, the Joe Biden administration temporarily lifted some US sanctions on the oil, gas, and gold industries operating in the country for 6 months, following the Barbados agreement. Some companies continued operating in Venezuela due to receiving individual licenses, such as the Chevron Corporation. Sanctions during the second Trump administration In February 2025, President Donald Trump announced that he was reversing the authorization that the Biden Administration granted to Chevron Corp. and its subsidiaries as a concession of promoting free elections and human rights reforms in Venezuela. Most importantly, those licenses authorized certain transactions necessary to the production and exportation and importation into the United States by Chevron, its subsidiaries, or joint ventures. == United States intervention in Venezuela (2025–Present) ==

Background and US naval blockade In late 2025, the United States significantly escalated its pressure campaign against the Venezuelan government under President Donald Trump, including a naval blockade of sanctioned oil tankers and multiple interdictions of tankers carrying Venezuelan crude oil. U.S. forces seized several Venezuelan oil tankers in the Caribbean Sea and announced sanctions targeting additional vessels and oil trading entities, actions that Venezuela's government condemned as violations of international law. These measures sharply reduced Venezuela's oil exports and led many shipping companies to avoid Venezuelan waters. In the weeks before January 3, the United States also conducted a series of strikes against maritime vessels it described as drug traffickers and deployed a larger naval and military presence in the Caribbean region. Intervention and removal of sanctions (2026) On January 3, 2026, the United States launched military strikes against targets in and around Caracas and other regions of Venezuela. President Donald Trump announced that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and first lady Cilia Flores had been captured by U.S. forces and transported out of the country, and said the United States would oversee Venezuela during a transition period. Trump repeatedly referred to Venezuelan oil resources and stated that U.S. oil companies would be involved in the country's petroleum industry in cooperation with Venezuelan acting president Delcy Rodríguez, former vicepresident of Maduro. The Trump administration has reportedly developed a plan to control Venezuela's oil for "years to come". Trump's initial attempts to enlist major oil companies, such as ExxonMobil, to invest in oil extraction in Venezuela was met with a "lukewarm" response due to the country's instability, hydrocarbons law and poor infrastructure. However, Shell and Chevron have expressed interest. On January 14, the United States Department of Energy announced that the United States had completed its first sales of Venezuelan oil valued at $500 million as part of a $2 billion deal between the United States and Venezuelan governments. On 20 January, Delcy Rodríguez confirmed having received the first $300 million. She announced the money will go to the exchange market in Venezuela, the national banks and the central bank. On January 23, the first cargo of 460,000 barrels of naphtha by Vitol, necessary to deal with the heavy crude oil, arrived in Venezuela. Before that, cargo was last received in December by Chevron Corporation in an agreement with the United States, as the US blockade had stopped many suppliers. On January 27, Delcy Rodríguez announced that the United States was unfreezing various funds related to 2019 oil sanctions on Venezuela. The next day, Reuters reported that a US refiner, Citgo, bought Venezuelan oil for the first time since 2019. On January 29, the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control lifted various oil-related sanctions imposed on Venezuela, authorizing US companies to buy, sell, transport, store and refine Venezuelan crude oil. US sanctions on production of oil were not lifted. The Trump administration also announced that additional sanctions will be lifted soon. == See also ==