The Trump administration has opened the door for Venezuela to sell gold into the US in a major boost to a country facing crippling dollar shortages due to restrictions on oil exports.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a license allowing US entities to undertake certain transactions involving Venezuelan-origin gold that would otherwise be prohibited under sanctions, according to a Friday notice. The authorization comes with several safeguards such as contracts governed by US law and payments being placed in US-controlled accounts.
The license doesn’t cover debt swaps or digital payments; transactions involving Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, or China-linked entities; or mining or producing gold inside Venezuela.
The announcement comes after Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s visit this week to Caracas as the US seeks to revive oil and mineral production in the South American nation, stepping up coordination with Venezuela’s interim government in the wake of the January capture of former President Nicolas Maduro. The US and Venezuela have agreed to re-establish diplomatic relations, seven years after the US suspended operations at its embassy in Caracas.
The US administration has already struck a deal that would see Venezuela’s state mining company sell as much as 1,000 kilograms of gold to commodities trader Trafigura, according to people familiar with the matter.
Over the years, Maduro resorted to selling tons of gold to illegal international buyers from the vaults of Venezuela’s central bank to help the country’s scant finances. The sales impacting the nation’s gold reserves came as oil production plummeted on years of mismanagement and graft, and lately US sanctions.
Bullion gained even more importance as a source of hard currency for Venezuela last year as the haven asset hit repeated record highs and the US government ratcheted up restrictions on its oil exports. The nation’s central bank sold nearly six tons of bullion in the second half, mainly in December when the US began seizing its oil tankers.
Venezuelan gold was mined in a hub envisioned by late Hugo Chávez, Arco Minero, located in the south of the country, approximately the size of Portugal. Over the years it has become a den for illegal mining activities and environmental degradation. The absence of state authority has given rise to criminal syndicates an armed groups, even though the military have been deployed in the area.
(By Jennifer A. Dlouhy and James Attwood)
Venezuela's Gas Potential Could Overshadow Its Famous Oil Reserves
By Felicity Bradstock - Mar 06, 2026
- While attention is often on Venezuela's vast oil reserves, many experts believe that exploiting its natural gas fields, which were previously neglected, presents a more immediate opportunity for economic success.
- Developing Venezuela's gas industry will likely require an energy partnership with neighboring Trinidad and Tobago, as the island nation possesses the necessary infrastructure for processing and exporting the fuel that Venezuela lacks.
- Major international companies like Shell and BP are pursuing key Venezuelan gas projects, such as the Dragon and Cocuina fields, a move facilitated by greater leniency on U.S. sanctions.
Following the United States intervention in Venezuela on 3rd January, which brought an end to President Nicolás Maduro’s 13-year dictatorship, all eyes have been on the South American country’s oil industry. Once one of the world’s biggest oil producers, output has waned in recent years. However, with U.S. President Trump setting his sights on Venezuelan crude, many are speculating just how quickly its resources can be tapped. While the focus is on Venezuela’s potential as an oil power, others think that more immediate success may be seen in the exploitation of its gas fields.
Venezuela is home to the largest oil reserves in the world, with an estimated 300 billion barrels. However, years of underinvestment and mismanagement have led to a significant reduction in output. The recent U.S. intervention in the South American country has drawn new investor interest in its energy market, as President Trump vows to rapidly redevelop Venezuela’s long-neglected oil resources.
On 13th February, the White House published a press release that stated, “The Trump Administration is rapidly implementing President Trump’s vision to reopen and develop Venezuela’s oil industry for the shared benefit of the American and Venezuelan people. Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, the United States has already issued several general licenses at record speed for oil and gas companies?to make unprecedented investments in Venezuela’s energy infrastructure.”
The statement went on to say, “Venezuela holds tremendous economic potential, but years of instability, corruption, and economic mismanagement have limited?the nation’s?growth and prosperity. These general licenses invite American and other aligned companies to?play a constructive role in supporting economic recovery?and responsible investment.”
While the world eyes Venezuela’s untapped oil, some believe that there may be greater mid-term potential in exploiting its natural gas reserves. Most of Venezuela’s gas is trapped deep beneath the seafloor. While these reserves were first discovered several decades ago, ago, off the country’s eastern coast, along the border with Trinidad and Tobago, the Venezuelan government left them largely untouched as it focused its attention on oil production.
Several oil majors, such as Shell, have previously approached Venezuela for a stake in its gas business, even when interest in the country’s oil industry was waning due to geopolitical instability and U.S. sanctions. For years, U.S. sanctions on Venezuela’s government and its state-owned oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela, have restricted the development of its gas industry. In addition, developing its natural gas industry would require cooperation with neighbouring Trinidad and Tobago.
Trinidad and Tobago already has the necessary infrastructure to transport fuel onshore and export it, which Venezuela does not. If the two countries established an energy partnership, Trinidad’s pre-existing infrastructure could help Venezuela to develop its gas industry more rapidly. However, the two powers, which are separated by language (Spanish and English), have had a strained relationship in recent years. Trinidad and Tobago has generally sided with the United States when it comes to Maduro’s presidency and the decision to impose sanctions on Venezuelan energy.
Venezuela’s biggest natural gas prospect is the giant Dragon oil field, as it is the closest to being developed. The Venezuelan government previously conducted exploration activities in the field but was unable to retrieve the gas buried there due to a lack of funding to continue exploration. These efforts were further undermined by the sinking of an exploration rig in 2010.
In 2023, the Venezuelan government made a deal with Shell, allowing the foreign firm to explore the Dragon field. The plan was to construct a short pipeline between Dragon and Shell’s existing infrastructure on the island of Trinidad, rather than to start from scratch in Venezuela.
If Shell develops Dragon, the field is expected to generate around $500 million a year in revenue, based on current natural gas prices, of which at least 45 percent is expected to go to Venezuela in the form of taxes and royalties. “These are opportunities that could potentially be activated within months, with potentially a few billion dollars of investments and production in the next couple of years,” Shell’s CEO, Wael Sawan, told CNBC.
U.S. Energy Secretary, Chris Wright, said that developing a regional natural gas collaboration could be “a real potential win-win for Trinidad and Tobago, a win for the global L.N.G. market, a win for Venezuela.”
Meanwhile, BP is pursuing another Venezuelan gas project, a field known as Cocuina, which greater leniency on U.S. sanctions may make possible. In late February, the U.S. Treasury Department appeared to give oil and gas firms greater leeway to negotiate with Venezuela and operate in the South American country. “They are splicing together an environment that allows the existing players to operate,” said Rachel Ziemba, an adjunct senior fellow at the Centre for a New American Security.
While President Trump is eyeing long-term oil industry development in Venezuela, some international oil majors may be more interested in the South American country’s natural gas potential. Developing the resource will likely require collaboration with neighbouring Trinidad and Tobago, and could lead to the development of a new regional Latin America-Caribbean energy hub.
By Felicity Bradstock for Oilprice.com
Gold Reserve, other miners receive US license to negotiate Venezuela return
Gold Reserve said on Thursday the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control has issued a 30-day license allowing certain companies, including the miner, to negotiate with Venezuela.
Shares of the company rose nearly 11% in early market trading.
US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum arrived in the South American country on Wednesday with more than two dozen US mining and minerals companies, which he said could represent billions in investment and thousands of high-paying jobs for Venezuela.
Gold Reserve said the delegation met with Venezuelan acting President Delcy Rodriguez to discuss the conditions necessary to enable foreign investment and support the resumption of mining operations in the country.
The company plans to resume mining in Venezuela, marking a return to the country nearly 17 years after the Venezuelan government seized control of the company’s Brisas gold mine.
The company operated the Brisas gold mine in Venezuela’s Orinoco Arc until 2009.
(By Dharna Bafna; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
Trafigura said to strike deal to buy Venezuela gold in US pact
Stock image.
The Trump administration has struck a deal that would see Venezuela’s state mining company sell as much as 1,000 kilograms of gold to commodities trader Trafigura, according to people familiar with the matter.
Venezuelan-owned Minerven will sell 650 kilograms to 1,000 kilograms of gold dore bars to the trading house, the people said. The gold will then be sold on to refineries in the US, they said.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control is issuing a license to enable the sale, according to the people. The deal comes as part of Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s visit to Caracas this week as the US seeks to revive oil and mineral production in the country and step up coordination with Venezuela’s interim government after the January capture of former President Nicolas Maduro.
Final details are still being hammered out, the people said. Other similar deals are expected to follow, one person said.
For Trafigura, the purchase marks another step in its deeper push into precious metals, which have been on a record-breaking multiyear rally. Rival trading houses have also been seeking to push into the space, spying an opportunity to finance gold production in developing economies mostly shunned by banks who fear compliance risks.
A spokesperson for Trafigura declined to comment on the transaction.
Axios first reported the sale on Wednesday. The report came after a Wednesday meeting between Burgum and Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez to discuss mining reforms and mineral extraction. Rodriguez told Burgum, along with mining executives and metals traders at the gathering, that her country would move “Trump speed” to help them unlock Venezuela’s mineral wealth.
Bullion gained even more importance as a source of hard currency for Venezuela last year as the haven asset hit repeated record highs and the US government ratcheted up restrictions on its oil exports. The nation’s central bank sold nearly six tons of bullion in the second half, mainly in December when the US began seizing its oil tankers.
Gold mining in the South American nation picked up after the 2016 creation of a southern area for large-scale mineral extraction called the Orinoco Mining Arc. The measure aimed to offset oil declines, although much of its production is informal or illicit, linked to armed groups and dirty practices. While the government promotes gold for revenue and reserves, transparency remains limited.
A chunk of Venezuela’s current gold position is held at the Bank of England. However, the country cannot access these funds because the UK has not recognized its government since 2019. That position has remained unchanged following Maduro’s capture by US forces.
(By Jennifer A. Dlouhy, James Attwood and Jack Ryan)
Venezuela to ensure security of mining companies, US Interior Secretary says
US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said a new mining law in Venezuela will create opportunities for companies, licenses allowing them to operate are on the horizon and the interim government of Delcy Rodriguez has promised to ensure their security, sounding an optimistic note at the end of a two-day visit.
Burgum, who also heads the US National Energy Dominance Council, has hailed efforts by Rodriguez to open the South American country to foreign investment in oil and minerals, echoing praise by US President Donald Trump.
Burgum is the second cabinet secretary to visit Venezuela since a January US raid that captured President Nicolas Maduro. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright visited in February.
Despite having massive reserves of minerals from gold to iron ore, bauxite and coltan, Venezuela’s output is at a fraction of capacity as plants urgently need major repairs and investment for expansions and upgrades. The country’s main conglomerate, CVG, remains cash-strapped and under US sanctions, as does state mining company Minerven.
Following nationalizations under late President Hugo Chavez, foreign investment has been minimal in the last decade. Some experts now see room for an immediate export recovery, particularly for gold, but have warned that massive investment – even higher than for the oil industry – is needed, along with renewed efforts for exploration.
Burgum brought more than two dozen mining and minerals companies with him on the visit, he said, and met on Thursday morning in Caracas with major foreign oil and gas companies as well as the heads of large Venezuelan companies and banks.
Asked about corruption and security issues – including armed groups which participate in illegal mining in some regions – Burgum said the companies interested in coming into or returning to Venezuela have proven track records of integrity, and the new law will be an opportunity for them to create jobs.
“I think you’re going to see this government very concerned about providing the right kind of security. We heard assurances in the meeting today and yesterday that if companies wanted to get to these areas, do due diligence, think about reopening mines, maybe even getting back to mines that they themselves were running 15 or 20 years ago, that this government would ensure their security,” Burgum said.
“I’m feeling very optimistic about an environment where investment is going to flow, not just to offshore oil and gas, not just to Caracas but actually to the interior where these enormous resources exist,” he added.
There will soon be a set of general licenses for the mining industry to allow them to operate despite enduring sanctions, similar to some already issued for oil producers, Burgum added.
Oil production
Rodriguez has said that an oil reform passed in January – which lowered taxes, expanded the oil ministry’s decision-making power and granted autonomy for private producers, among other measures – is the model for the law to change mining regulations, which the government has said will be sent to lawmakers soon.
The law, the draft of which has not been made public, is expected to include provisions that would allow foreign companies to exploit gold, diamonds and rare earths, and is likely to pass given the ruling socialist party’s control of the national assembly.
Venezuela’s current mining legislation dates to 1999. The country owes billions of dollars to industrial conglomerates, oil and mining companies after the deep wave of nationalizations that prompted many to leave the country.
Exploration has not yet taken place in Venezuela to confirm reserves of rare earths, a grouping of 17 metals used to make magnets that turn power into motion. Rare earths are a subset of critical minerals, the global supply of which is dominated by China.
Burgum added that he is sure Venezuela will exceed its oil production goals for this year, adding that Chevron, which has maintained a special license to operate in Venezuela despite sanctions, said in a meeting earlier in the day it had reached record production at its project in the country on Wednesday.
Oil major Shell inked several oil agreements with the Venezuelan government, it said Thursday, spanning offshore gas and onshore oil and gas opportunities.
(By Sarah Kinosian, Vivian Sequera, Mayela Armas, Marianna Parraga and Julia Symmes Cobb; Editing by Stephen Coates)
Venezuela mining reform coming soon, acting president says
Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez said on Wednesday a reform of the country’s main mining law will be submitted in coming days to the country’s legislature, after a meeting in Caracas with US Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, where the two officials hailed cooperation on minerals and a shared desire to pave the way for investment.
Burgum, who also heads the US National Energy Dominance Council, arrived in the South American country earlier on Wednesday with more than two dozen US mining and minerals companies, which he said could represent billions in investment and thousands of high-paying jobs for Venezuela.
The visit is part of a US push to open Venezuela to American investment, especially in oil, gas and mining, as the Trump administration tries to exert more control over the country following a January US raid that captured President Nicolas Maduro. It is the second visit by a US cabinet secretary since the ouster of Maduro, who courted the likes of China and Russia as allies.
In public, Trump has heaped praise on Rodriguez for cooperating with the US and hailed her again on Wednesday, saying she is “doing a great job” and that oil was beginning to flow from the country. Rodriguez thanked Trump in her joint remarks alongside Burgum at the Miraflores presidential palace after their meeting.
Despite the public support, behind the scenes, the Trump administration has been applying pressure to achieve its objectives. US officials are threatening a legal case against Rodriguez that could include corruption and money laundering charges, Reuters reported Tuesday, citing four people familiar with the matter, and Washington is also pushing her to arrest or detain several former high-level party officials it may want extradited.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote on X that the Reuters story was completely false. Venezuela’s communications ministry did not respond to requests for comment on the report.
Mining law changes expected
The mining law, expected to include provisions that would allow foreign companies to exploit gold, diamonds and rare earths, will be proposed in the coming days, Rodriguez said, adding she hopes it will be passed swiftly.
“We want the successful models of the hydrocarbons law to also be reflected in the mining sector,” she said.
Rodriguez said the meeting built on previous work with US Energy Secretary Chris Wright, who visited the country in February. She said the agenda focused on “metallic minerals, non‑metallic minerals, strategic and non‑strategic minerals”. Energy topics would be covered in meetings on Thursday, she added.
Her brother Jorge Rodriguez is the head of the National Assembly and has already ushered through changes to oil regulations meant to stoke investment.
Burgum is expected to meet with oil and gas companies on Thursday to discuss expansion and investment, two sources earlier told Reuters.
“The opportunities for collaboration and synergy between our two great countries of Venezuela and the United States are unlimited,” Burgum said. “I know Delcy (Rodriguez), like President Trump, wants to move to cut the red tape to allow that capital investment to flow.”
Rare earths unconfirmed
Venezuela’s current mining legislation dates to 1999.
The South American country owes billions of dollars to industrial conglomerates, oil and mining companies after deep waves of nationalizations two decades ago, including to Crystallex, Gold Reserve and Rusoro Mining.
Exploration has not yet taken place in Venezuela to confirm reserves of rare earths, a grouping of 17 metals used to make magnets that turn power into motion. Rare earths are a subset of critical minerals, the global supply of which is dominated by China.
A report from the Venezuelan government in 2018 on mineral deposits used key mining industry terms like reserve and resource interchangeably, making it difficult to ascertain what the true measurements are. An official map published in 2021 showed reserves of antimony, copper, nickel, coltan, molybdenum, magnesium, silver, zinc, titanium, tungsten and uranium, but did not list volumes.
As part of bilateral agreements, Iranian companies in past years have explored for mining resources in the country, but the work did not lead to investments.
(By Marianna Parraga; Editing by David Gaffen)
