President Donald Trump speaks to the press in response to the U.S. military action in Venezuela with, from left, Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Cain at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, on January 3, 2025.
Jim Watson | AFP | Getty Images
The Trump administration is in talks with several oil companies about Venezuela, a White House official told CNBC on Monday.
President Donald Trump said Saturday that U.S. oil companies will invest billions of dollars to rebuild Venezuela’s energy sector after the detention of President Nicolas Maduro.
White House officials did not say which companies the administration had spoken to or when the conversations took place.
“All of our oil companies are ready and willing to make significant investments in Venezuela to rebuild the oil infrastructure destroyed by the illegitimate Maduro regime,” White House Press Secretary Taylor Rogers said in a statement.
Reuters earlier reported that Chevron, Conoco and Exxon were not in talks with the regime about overthrowing Maduro.
Energy Secretary Chris Wright is scheduled to attend a Goldman Sachs energy conference in Miami this week. Executives from Chevron and ConocoPhillips are also scheduled to attend.
Chevron is the only US oil major with operations in Venezuela. CNBC has reached out to Chevron, Conoco and Exxon for comment.
