Caracas, Sept. 2 (SANA) Venezuela’s oil production could more than double over the next few years under a series of energy agreements involving U.S. and international companies, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Tuesday.
Wright, speaking to reporters after arriving in Caracas, said investment tied to the agreements would significantly increase crude supplies and put downward pressure on oil prices, Reuters reported.
He also said U.S. gasoline prices were expected to fall in the coming weeks following measures by the U.S. administration to ease regulatory restrictions on refiners.
While increased oil production should help lower crude prices, Wright said limited refining capacity remained the biggest bottleneck affecting gasoline and diesel prices.
Chevron, the largest U.S. oil producer operating in Venezuela, is expected to sign agreements on energy projects this week alongside Italy’s Eni, India’s ONGC, Colombia’s GeoPark and U.S.-based GE Vernova.
Wright’s visit comes days after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a separate agreement providing the United States with long-term access to one-fifth of Venezuela’s proven oil reserves, among the largest in the world.
Under that arrangement, U.S.-backed private oil company North American Blue Energy Partners, or NABEP, would receive a 100-year lease covering 17 Venezuelan oil fields with estimated reserves of about 65 billion barrels.
Venezuela’s crude production peaked at more than 3 million barrels per day in the late 1990s before declining sharply amid underinvestment, mismanagement and U.S. sanctions.
Output has ranged between 1.1 million and 1.2 million barrels per day in recent months, with a slight increase since U.S. forces detained former President Nicolás Maduro.
N.J/ABD
