Chevron Doubles Down on Venezuelan Oil Investments
US oil giant Chevron is expanding its operations in Venezuela, where it has had a presence for over a century. The company will invest more than $7bn through its joint ventures to double oil production to about 600,000 barrels per day over the next five years.
The additional acreage assigned to Chevron is located in the Orinoco Belt, which is considered one of the richest oil regions in the world. Chevron's Petroindependencia joint venture will expand to include two adjacent areas in the Carabobo region.
Chevron CEO Mike Wirth said that the company's history in Venezuela 'reflects our confidence in the country's deep resource potential and its ability to compete for investment within our portfolio for decades.'
The expansion is separate from a recent deal involving a fifth of Venezuela's oil reserves, where the US government took an equity stake in a private oil firm operating there.