GE Vernova is set to work on major sections of Venezuela's electricity network, with a blueprint that could restore several gigawatts of capacity. People familiar with the arrangement say it includes multiple high-impact projects rolling out within six months, and the package is slated for a formal reveal later Wednesday. They requested anonymity because the details aren't yet public. The company did not respond to a request for comment.
Speaking Wednesday morning on Bloomberg Television, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright confirmed GE Vernova agreed to a Venezuela deal, while holding back specifics. He spoke after touching down in Caracas; there, he is slated to meet acting Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez.
After two decades of decline, blackouts occur daily in Venezuela, and residents say outages worsened after twin earthquakes in June. Experts estimate the largely hydro-powered system needs at least $25 billion to stabilize. The strain is so severe that officials have told energy firms joining the U.S. push to revive oil and gas to bring their own generators.
Among the hurdles for producers is an unreliable electricity system as the Trump administration tries to attract oil companies back to the country. How fast output can rise remains uncertain.
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Wright is expected on Wednesday to unveil more than a dozen energy agreements, with the largest involving Chevron Corp., which is significantly expanding in Venezuela via two massive oil fields in the Orinoco Belt. Even though the country holds some of the world's biggest reserves, producers still grapple with decaying infrastructure, recurring power shortfalls, and lingering environmental obligations. In the view of analysts and industry experts, restoring production to around 3 million barrels a day - the level before the long downturn - could take more than a decade.
GE Vernova, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, manufactures power and electrical gear for transmission networks and data centers, including gas turbines and transformers. Those products are in short supply among manufacturers capable of scaling, and the company has recorded robust growth in orders and revenue over the past few years as it races to meet rising power demand.
If this grid rebuild and the broader deal slate move from signatures to projects in the coming months, it could lift demand for heavy power gear and services. But the real-world impact on energy flows will be slow burn territory, showing up over years rather than quarters, which means any ripple effects on prices or supply will likely build gradually.