Venezuela opens its oil sector to private investors

"The decision comes less than a month after the US launched a military attack and kidnapped the country's then-President Nicolas Maduro. Washington has since put pressure on Caracas for access to its oil sector. President Donald Trump's administration is pursuing an ambitious $100 billion reconstruction plan for Venezuela's oil industry, and intends to manage the oil sales "indefinitely." It has also been pressing US oil executives to invest in Venezuela, but they have so far been reluctant to commit."

"The legislation offers private companies control over the production and sale of oil. It also relinquishes state control of exploration. Furthermore. the law allows for independent arbitration of disputes, and removes the mandate for disputes to be settled only in Venezuelan courts. Taxes will be limited to a single contribution of no more than 15% on gross income, and royalties limited to 30%. It marks a reversal of one of the central tenets of the nation's self-proclaimed socialist movement that has ruled for decades."

Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez signed a law opening the nation's oil sector to privatization after the National Assembly approved the overhaul. The legislation grants private companies control over oil production and sales and removes state control of exploration. The law allows independent arbitration and permits dispute resolution outside Venezuelan courts. Taxes are capped at a single contribution of no more than 15% on gross income and royalties limited to 30%. The reform reverses key elements of the long-standing socialist oil model while preserving state discretion over contract issuance. The move follows intensified US pressure and offers potential foreign investment opportunities.

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