Venezuela inked a new energy cooperation memorandum with TotalEnergies SE over the weekend, positioning the company for a return to the country's oil and gas sector. The signing took place in Caracas, with Acting President Delcy Rodríguez presiding over the event.
According to the announcement, TotalEnergies E&P New Ventures, a unit of the French company, will participate in energy projects in Venezuela. Rodríguez noted that new investment is supported by stable legal frameworks created by a hydrocarbons law enacted earlier this year after the US captured and deposed former president Nicolás Maduro. Last month, US President Donald Trump unveiled a plan to take majority control of a large share of Venezuela's oil wealth, a move critics say echoes past resource grabs and could pose long-term risks for companies operating there.
In the early part of this month, Venezuela, in coordination with the US, unveiled oil partnership plans with major players such as Chevron Corp., GE Vernova Inc., and Eni SpA to boost crude production. At the signing ceremony, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the agreements amount to "tens of billions" in investment. In addition, the US government reached a deal for a 35% ownership interest in North American Blue Energy Partners, the firm linked to Venezuelan Alejandro Betancourt. Together, these are the most significant capital commitments by energy companies since the capture of Maduro, and they set the scene for any TotalEnergies comeback.
TotalEnergies and partner Equinor exited the Petrocedeno oil project in 2021. Chief Executive Officer Patrick Pouyanne said then that the decision was not tied to Venezuelan politics and aligned with the company's effort to reduce its carbon footprint. Subsequently, the company exited its natural gas business in Venezuela and relinquished its majority stake in YPergas SA, having maintained operations in the country since the 1990s.
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If the new memorandum leads to projects on the ground, it would be another piece of a broader push to rebuild output. For everyday investors, that can ripple into fuel and power costs, which hit monthly budgets long before they show up in earnings reports.
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