By June Johnson
On January 15, Agence France-Presse reported that Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, said the government plans to pursue legal reforms in the oil sector as part of an effort to reset relations with the United States.
Speaking before the National Assembly, Rodríguez said the proposed changes would target the country’s Hydrocarbons Law, which currently limits foreign participation in the development of nationalized oil resources. While she offered no specifics, she said the reforms are aimed at drawing in overseas investment for new oil projects and for existing fields that have long suffered from underinvestment and deteriorating infrastructure.
The announcement comes as the U.S. Department of Energy has outlined plans related to Venezuela’s oil industry and has begun selling Venezuelan crude. U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Washington would maintain “indefinite” control over the country’s oil sales.
Oil exports remain Venezuela’s primary source of income. Despite holding roughly one-fifth of the world’s proven oil reserves, the country’s output has steadily declined under years of U.S. sanctions and a lack of capital investment. In 2024, Venezuelan crude production accounted for only about 1% of global output. Although production rebounded in 2025 to more than 1 million barrels per day from a historic low of 360,000 barrels per day, it remains well below the roughly 3 million barrels per day produced a quarter-century ago.
Previously, on January 5, Rodriguez had invited the U.S. government to collaborate on an agenda of collaboration and made moves to reopen the U.S. embassy in Caracas.
Donald Trump has made several remarks on social media that the U.S. will run Venezuela after the kidnapping of Nicolas Maduro. On January 6, he had unilaterally stated that the Venezuelan government had committed to delivering between 30 and 50 million barrels of high-quality oil to the US.
On January 14, Trump revealed that him and Rodriguez had discussed oil, minerals, trade and security on a phone call, as the U.S. worked to “help Venezuela stabilize and recover.”
