US Oil Companies Demand ‘Serious Guarantee’ To Invest In Venezuela

U.S. oil companies want “serious guarantees” from Washington before they make large investments in Venezuela, as President Donald Trump urges them to back his bid to reshape energy markets, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.

U.S. officials held talks with top energy executives in Miami on Wednesday, the FT said, citing people familiar with the matter.

The talks come as Washington and Caracas progress in negotiations to supply up to 50 million barrels of Venezuelan oil to the United States and President Donald Trump presses American oil companies to invest in the South American country’s energy sector.

Trump is scheduled to meet with the heads of major oil companies at the White House on Friday to discuss ways of raising Venezuela’s oil production, and representatives from Exxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips, and Chevron would be present, Reuters reported on Wednesday.

Chevron, Exxon, and ConocoPhillips did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment on the FT report.

The executives’ meeting is expected to press the president on providing strong legal and financial guarantees before they agree to commit capital to Venezuela, FT said.

READ ALSO: US Says To Dictate Venezuela Decisions, Oil Sales

White House and State Department officials had, in recent weeks, told U.S. oil executives that they would need to return to Venezuela quickly and invest significant capital in the country to revive the damaged oil industry if they wanted compensation for assets expropriated by Venezuela two decades ago.

Reuters, however, said it could not immediately verify the report.