SLB Prepares to Revive Venezuelan Oil Production with 15 Idle Rig Restart
Oilfield services giant SLB is preparing to restart up to 15 idle drilling and workover rigs in Venezuela, aiming to ease one of the country's primary bottlenecks constraining crude production recovery. The move could help increase official production capacity from around 1.25 million barrels per day (bpd) to potentially higher levels.
The reactivation plans center on onshore activity, focusing on heavy-oil reservoirs in the Orinoco Belt and other eastern basins. SLB's existing equipment and local knowledge position it for both conventional onshore work and technically demanding heavy-oil operations. The company expects up to four rigs to return to service before the end of 2026.
Broad government planning has previously indicated a need for dozens of additional rigs, concentrated on Orinoco development and well recovery. SLB's efforts are separate from those of Formentera Partners, an Austin-based private equity firm that is in discussions with international service companies about importing drilling rigs into Venezuela.