Chevron Dives Deep into Venezuela's Oil Reserves

Chevron has announced plans to invest over $7 billion in Venezuela's oil industry over the next five years, more than doubling its production to around 600,000 barrels per day.

The company, which is already the largest private oil producer in the country, will benefit from 'enhanced fiscal, commercial and legal terms' under the new agreement, as well as access to additional acreage in the Orinoco Belt.

Total costs for the project are expected to be less than $20 per barrel, a relatively low price compared to other extraction projects.

Venezuela has the world's largest oil reserves, but its current output is only about 1.25 million barrels per day, down from over 3 million bpd 20 years ago due to dysfunction at state-run oil firm PDVSA.