US and Venezuela sign what Trump calls 'largest oil deal in history'

US President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social what he called the largest oil deal in world history, struck with Venezuela. According to Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, working closely with Venezuela's interim president Delcy Rodríguez and in partnership with private business, secured majority US control over more than 65 billion barrels of Venezuela's proven oil reserves.

Deal details

According to CBS News sources within the US administration, Venezuela's interim president granted a newly formed joint private venture a 100-year concession to develop oil fields estimated to hold 63 billion barrels of reserves. The US government will hold a 55% stake in the venture, split between equity participation and the right to receive oil at cost.

US officials say the new entity will become the world's second-largest corporate holder of proven oil reserves, after Saudi Arabia's state-owned Saudi Aramco. It remains unclear which specific private companies will take part, though only a handful of foreign oil and gas majors have retained a presence in Venezuela, including America's Chevron, Spain's Repsol and Italy's Eni.

Secretary of State Rubio said the agreement would attract nearly $100 billion in private investment, create thousands of well-paying jobs, and help rebuild Venezuela's economy.

Background

According to the US Energy Information Administration, Venezuela holds the world's largest proven oil reserves, exceeding 300 billion barrels, compared with fewer than 50 billion barrels in the United States. Despite its vast resources, Venezuela's oil industry has long been in decline due to chronic underinvestment, aging infrastructure and heavy international sanctions. Most Western energy majors, including ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil, left the country nearly two decades ago after former president Hugo Chávez nationalized their assets. Chevron has remained the only major US company to keep a presence in Venezuela.