Sources say the U.S. government is seeking significant stakes in Venezuelan oil
reserves and the Pentagon is negotiating with energy investor Alejandro
Betancourt on a deal covering up to 17 fields across Venezuela’s main producing
regions, including the Orinoco heavy oil belt (Junín) and areas around Lake
Maracaibo. Proposals under discussion would have the Pentagon’s Office of
Strategic Capital (OSC) oversee investment and could include U.S. access via
leases of up to 100 years. Washington currently effectively controls Venezuelan
oil sales and has eased sanctions to allow U.S. firms to re-enter; with the
U.S.-Iran war disrupting Middle East supply and lifting global energy prices,
U.S. officials want to speed restoration of Venezuelan output. OSC lacks clear
authority to hold project equity, and the plan is expected to provoke legal and
political challenges in both the U.S. and Venezuela.
