"When news broke of U.S. forces attacking and seizing Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro earlier this month, Barry Blacklock's phone began buzzing. The Calgarian had lived in Venezuela for 17 years, becoming a permanent resident and working in the energy sector before leaving in 2009. That night I was getting emails from friends in Canada and since then, 50, 60 different WhatsApp messages, emails, phone calls from people, he said, during a video call interview from Mexico."
"He's now helping co-ordinate a contingent of companies looking to invest and bring equipment to Venezuela, where there could be a huge wave of demand for their services in the years ahead. He had organized a similar group back in 2019, when it appeared there might be a regime change, though that never materialized. "Obviously, a change is coming. We're just not sure what it is yet, said Blacklock, an entrepreneur with over 40 years of experience in the international oil and gas sector."
"Venezuela has the world's largest proven crude reserves, at an estimated 303 billion barrels. But its oil industry has been starved of new investment, equipment and technology for two decades, due to government corruption, hostility and state control. "A lot of the oilfields have been neglected. They're not producing," Blacklock said. "The equipment, the wellheads, the pumps a lot of the equipment on the surface has been stolen or just allowed to deteriorate so it has no value. It will all have to be replaced.""
U.S. forces' intervention and statements from U.S. leadership have triggered renewed interest in Venezuela's oil sector. Barry Blacklock, a Calgarian with extensive Venezuelan and oil-sector experience, is coordinating companies to invest and supply equipment to meet anticipated demand. A similar grouping formed in 2019 when a regime change seemed possible. Venezuela holds an estimated 303 billion barrels of proven crude reserves, but decades of corruption, state control and neglect have left infrastructure stolen, deteriorated or obsolete. Restoring production will require major capital, technology and equipment, while political instability and unclear foreign involvement remain key obstacles.
Read at www.cbc.ca
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