U.S. Oil Majors Show «Pretty Low» Appetite for Venezuela After Trump’s Push

Despite Donald Trump’s repeated assurances that American oil companies are eager to move into Venezuela and rebuild its energy sector, industry reaction has been far more muted since the U.S. launched its attack on the country and captured President Nicolás Maduro and his wife. Trump has publicly insisted that U.S. firms would lead the effort to restore Venezuela’s oil industry, declaring «We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure — the oil infrastructure — and start making money for the country». Yet executives and industry figures have shown little of the enthusiasm expressed by the president, signaling caution rather than excitement about investing in a country emerging from military intervention, political uncertainty and years of deterioration in its oil facilities.

According to CNN, U.S. oil companies cite a combination of structural, financial and political factors for their reluctance to reinvest in Venezuela, pushing back against the White House’s expectations. Industry executives point first to the state of the country’s oil sector, describing an industry in near collapse, with production facilities, pipelines and refineries severely degraded after years of mismanagement and sanctions. Rebuilding that infrastructure would require billions of dollars in upfront investment at a time when global oil prices remain relatively low, making the economic case difficult to justify. Executives have also stressed that Venezuela’s past actions weigh heavily on their calculations, noting that U.S. companies were expelled from the country roughly two decades ago and that Caracas has a history of seizing foreign oil assets. Taken together, those risks have led many firms to conclude that the potential returns do not outweigh the costs and uncertainties, despite pressure from the Trump administration to re-enter the Venezuelan market.

The White House has pushed back against claims of industry resistance, offering a sharply different account of how U.S. oil companies view the administration’s controversial move against Venezuela. Administration officials insist that energy executives are broadly supportive of the plan and prepared to participate in rebuilding the country’s oil sector, arguing that opposition has been overstated. «All of our oil companies are ready and willing to make big investments in Venezuela that will rebuild their oil infrastructure», a White House official said, framing the initiative as an opportunity rather than a liability. Senior administration figures are expected to hold meetings with industry leaders in the coming week to press that case, even as some U.S. companies privately describe the proposal as «a very high risk», citing political instability, legal uncertainty and the legacy of past expropriations.