Firms move in on Venezuelan oil seven months post Maduro removal

Foreign oil firms are accelerating their entry into Venezuela seven months after the US removed then-President Nicolás Maduro, anticipating the nation's vast crude reserves can now be exploited. Acting President Delcy Rodríguez has lifted a requirement for state-owned PDVSA to maintain majority stakes in joint ventures, enabling private companies to operate fields independently and retain more profits.

Simultaneously, Washington has lifted sanctions to facilitate access to Venezuela's estimated 300 billion barrels of oil. However, skepticism remains: ExxonMobil, which was expelled in 2007 when its assets were seized, labeled the country "uninvestable" as recently as January. Industry experts also caution that establishing new projects in the depleted sector could take up to five years and significant financial investment.

Brief written by urgent.news from Semafor's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.