New equipment has been introduced into Venezuela's oil sector, according to an announcement by Nabep on Tuesday. This company was selected to manage the agreement under which Washington will supervise 20% of the country's significant oil reserves.
According to a pact established at the end of August between Washington and Caracas, North American Blue Energy Partners (Nabep), the second largest private oil company in Venezuela, will be responsible for managing one-hundred-year concessions in seventeen oil fields, which have estimated reserves of sixty-five billion barrels of oil, according to the White House.
Donald Trump, the President of the United States, expressed his appreciation for what he classified as the 'biggest oil deal in world history.' Nabep grants Washington the prerogative to acquire, at production cost, twenty percent of the output, in addition to granting a thirty-five percent stake in the parent company to a US Department of Defense agency.
Among the new equipment that arrived last week are two drilling platforms, along with eleven new well intervention probes for oil wells. The company stated that this is 'the first time in over fifteen years that new mobile repair and maintenance systems will be used in Venezuelan oil fields.'
Alejandro Betancourt, executive general director, declared that 'every oil platform arriving in Venezuela brings us closer to our production goals and the recovery of our country's economy.' He is currently facing lawsuits in Spain and Switzerland related to money laundering.
In June, Venezuela had only two operational drilling platforms, according to the American company Baker Hughes, a number much lower than the more than one hundred that existed two decades ago. The oil industry has suffered an effective collapse since then, driven by lack of investment, corruption, and sanctions imposed by the United States.
After the detention of President Nicolás Maduro by the United States in January, production increased, reaching approximately 1.2 million barrels per day, compared to three million recorded at the end of the 20th century. The state company Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) set a goal of 1.5 million barrels per day for 2027.
Betancourt emphasized that despite the great challenge ahead, 'there is no better partner than the Government of the United States.'