Chevron's Long Game Pays Off in Landmark Venezuela Deal

Chevron's patience in Venezuela has finally paid off after two decades of struggling to extract oil from the country. The Houston-based company stayed in Venezuela while its major peers, including ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, left after President Hugo Chavez nationalized foreign assets in the mid-2000s. Chevron endured US sanctions, accounting write-offs, arrests of its employees, and accusations of collusion with a corrupt regime.

The payoff came on September 2, when Chevron signed a landmark deal that will provide it with billions of barrels of oil reserves, enough to last into the 2040s. The company plans to invest $7 billion over the next five years through its joint venture partnerships in Venezuela.

Chevron's CEO, Mike Wirth, said 'You have to have some patience and look at this out over time and not become discouraged.' The strategy had its costs, but Chevron is now encouraged by its long game. Wirth noted that the company needs to hang in there until all conditions come together: technology, economics, markets, and politics.