It looks like Chevron will be the largest benefactor of the change in Venezuela. The only company that stayed after Chavez kicked out all the other companies. Will those companies lay claim to their stolen assets? Thoughts?
16 replies (most recent on top)
The margins on the bbls of gunk that comes out of Venezuela with WTI in the $50s will be pathetic.
"...it's because they do not value experienced and talented professionals." This has been the case in Chevron since at least 2015. It's why you can't name a single person in upstream who has discovered a drop of oil in their career. It's why anemic management surround themselves with recent-hire "advisors" who have no experience to advise on anything other than where to go for lunch. It's why we have the best diversity but poorest performance amongst our peers. It's the naive hope that we can rev up Venezuela production in time to make up for the inevitable Permian decline.
@OP Ali Moshiri has way more experience and contacts in Venezuela than the current CVX management regime and he is making a move. This opportunity will slip through Chevron's hands due to incompetent management and poor timely decision making. There is a reason that CVX is dead last in performance among the oil companies...it's because they do not value experienced and talented professionals.
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/former-chevron-executive-seeks-2-billion-venezuelan-oil-projects-ft-reports-2026-01-05/
@gn - More like VC that just bought Citgo…
https://www.commondreams.org/news/paul-singer-venezuela
You can be sure Chevron is scrounging the rosters right now to come up with someone with Venezuelan background to take over as country manager. Same as India, Mexico, and Brazil.
Uncertainty in Venezuela will be around for at least several years. Just look at post-Assad Syria, post-Hussein Iraq, post-Allende Chile. Even if given US approval to invest in Venezuela, companies will be reluctant until stability is reached. Add to that PDVSA (like PEMEX) was viewed as a cash cow and did little infrastructure investment. It'll be an uphill and $$$-intensive effort to resurrect oil production in Venezuela to pre-Chavez levels.
Co-mies btfo
I mean, we just sold a bunch of oil to Orban and Hungary. So I would say the morals left already.
This whole thing was done specifically to benefit Chevron and Exxon
I don't know if Chevron will ever recover their public image after this.
If Chevron jumps straight in, surely got to question the values of this company
Sounds like MW got a call from daddy T before the abduction. Allegedly
They’ll have to take money away from the precious dividend to fund the capital budget increase so doubtful.
How low will oil go?
@OP You will be retired before anything of substance changes in the oil fields of Venezuela. The current low price of crude oil, the undesirable heavy crude in those fields, and political uncertainty means no meaningful investment for the foreseeable future.
Now we can see why CEO loves the orange man