Venezuela's Century-Long Struggle for Petroleum Control

Venezuela has transformed its petroleum industry over a century of struggle for control and profit.

The country holds the largest proven crude oil reserves, with over 300 billion barrels located mainly in the Orinoco Oil Belt. In the early twentieth century, foreign energy corporations established an extractive model that concentrated profits outside the country while leaving minimal revenue for local development.

Venezuelan social movements and state officials sought mechanisms to capture a larger share of this wealth, establishing state regulatory frameworks and leading global oil initiatives.