Overview
- Venezuelan officials and U.S. energy executives signed contracts in Houston this week, including a Hunt Oil production deal for two fields and a nationwide framework with SLB for integrated reservoir studies.
- SLB’s engagement explicitly includes digital work such as AI-driven reservoir modeling and data integration to map reserves and guide field rehabilitation.
- U.S. officials say Venezuela’s output is roughly 1.25 million barrels per day and that about half of its exports are now flowing to U.S. refiners, supported in part by U.S. naphtha shipments to boost crude flows.
- Industry analysts and advisers expect only modest near-term gains from these early deals—roughly up to 300,000 barrels per day over the next year—without clearer contract terms and dispute-resolution rules.
- After decades of decline from more than 3 million barrels per day, Venezuela’s recovery so far has relied on optimising existing wells and the early entry of independents and service firms rather than major oil supermajors.