Chevron Targets More Than $7 Billion in Investment to Raise Venezuela Output to 600,000 Barrels a Day
Key Facts
Reuters reported that Chevron agreed updated terms for its joint ventures with Venezuela on September 2 and plans to invest more than $7 billion over the next five years, targeting production of about 600,000 barrels a day. The announcement came during a signing ceremony in Caracas attended by interim President Delcy Rodríguez and U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright. Reuters said international energy companies, including Chevron, Eni and GE Vernova, committed to expanding their oil projects. The planned investment puts the company on a path to long-term expansion in a country with vast oil resources, while higher output remains dependent on turning the agreements into actual operations. Chevron shares closed at $213.28 on November 11, according to EL7 data.
On August 31, Reuters reported that Chevron, GE Vernova, ONGC, Eni and GeoPark were preparing to sign final agreements after months of negotiations, citing five sources familiar with the preparations. The sources said most of the agreements complete a six-month transition of oil contracts to an amended hydrocarbons law. The law gives foreign companies greater flexibility to expand and operate fields, export oil and collect sales proceeds, Reuters reported. Reuters then reported on September 2 that the companies committed to the expansions at the signing ceremony, moving the process from preparation and negotiations to the announcement of agreements. The expansions were tied to the transition of energy contracts to new terms under the oil law reform approved in January 2026.
Chevron said its planned investment would support production growth across its three joint ventures in Venezuela, whose output rose 15% from the start of the year through the September 2 report. That growth reflects progress made before the new investments have had their full effect, while the company did not specify in its statement a phased timetable for reaching the production target. The terms Reuters cited included improved financial, commercial and legal arrangements, as well as additional acreage in the Orinoco Belt. In April, Chevron signed two agreements to expand its operations in the belt, including an asset swap that added a heavy-oil area to its main project. One of the agreements also raised the company’s stake in the Petroindependencia project from 35.8% to 49%.
Chevron’s joint ventures with state oil company PDVSA were producing 260,000 barrels a day in April, about a quarter of Venezuela’s output at the time, according to Reuters. The agency estimated the country’s production at about 1.25 million barrels a day in its September 2 report, compared with a peak of 3 million barrels a day in the late 1990s. The comparison shows the gap between current output and the historic peak, providing context for the expansion plans. Venezuela has proven oil reserves of more than 303 billion barrels, according to OPEC’s 2025 Statistical Bulletin, as cited by The Associated Press. Chevron Chief Executive Mike Wirth said the company’s history in Venezuela spans more than a century and that expanding its presence reflects its confidence in the country’s resources.
But signing the agreements does not mean additional production will appear immediately. Eni Chief Executive Claudio Descalzi said during the September ceremony that what was needed was "not just signing papers, but barrels." Amy Jaffe, director of New York University’s Energy, Climate Justice and Sustainability Lab, estimated that bringing new field facilities in the Orinoco into operation could take from 2 to 4 years. That estimate ties the impact of the investments on supply to completing and operating the facilities, rather than simply announcing expansion plans. The Associated Press also reported that Venezuela’s National Assembly expressed support for the agreement at a session, but did not discuss it or vote to approve it, although the constitution requires its approval for arrangements of this kind.