US secures 100-year concessions in Venezuela oil deal: White House

The White House provided specific details regarding an energy pact that grants Washington majority control over 65 billion barrels of proven oil reserves in Venezuela.

North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP) has granted the Pentagon’s Office of Strategic Capital a 35 per cent equity stake in its corporate parent “at no cost to the American taxpayer”, the White House said about the deal that was announced on Friday.

Furthermore, the US State Department has the right to purchase 20pc of the production at cost.

A notable discrepancy emerged between the two capitals regarding the duration of the agreement. While Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodriguez previously announced a 25-year deal, the White House said that the private firm NABEP has secured 100-year concessions for 17 specific oil fields. Rodriguez assumed power in January after a US military operation captured President Nicolas Maduro.

The agreement provides fiscal support for the interim government, with NABEP expected to pay $200bn in royalties and taxes in the first 25 years to fund reconstruction and social development.

Strategic control, infrastructure

The deal is governed by US law and subject to the jurisdiction of American courts. To ensure operational security, a majority of NABEP’s board of directors must be US citizens, and Washington maintains veto power over any appointments to the board.

The agreement would provide Venezuela with up to $100bn in new infrastructure investment to scale production after decades of “underinvestment and mismanagement” under previous regimes, the White House said.

Output will be processed through US refineries, a strategy expected to support thousands of domestic jobs.

The supply is intended to refill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the federal emergency oil supply stored in Texas and Louisiana.

Geopolitical realignment

The White House characterised the deal as a re-establishment of the Monroe Doctrine, the 19th-century policy opposing foreign interference in the Western Hemisphere. The pact explicitly targets fields previously operated by Russian and Chinese firms, aiming to purge “malign influence” from the region.

The energy pivot occurs as the Strait of Hormuz, a critical oil transit point, remains impacted by the US-Israeli war on Iran that began on February 28.