Continental would mark first major U.S. oil deal in Venezuela since Chevron’s $7B plan
Continental Resources founder Harold Hamm, described by the Wall Street Journal as one of President Trump’s closest allies in the oil patch after high-fiving the president as votes rolled in on election night in 2024, signed a nonbinding memorandum of understanding with Venezuela’s state-run Petróleos de Venezuela on Wednesday alongside Continental CEO Doug Lawler, who had traveled to Venezuela earlier this year. The signing took place at the G20 Energy Abundance Ministerial in Houston. The Oklahoma-based company said it hopes to sign a production-sharing agreement in coming weeks.
The field sits north of Venezuela’s Orinoco River in the state of Anzoátegui and holds an estimated 30 billion barrels of oil resources, according to Continental. The company said Venezuela’s overhaul of its hydrocarbon legal framework cleared the way for the investment.
Continental, which calls itself the world’s largest privately held oil-and-gas producer, is the largest oil producer in North Dakota’s Bakken shale and pumps about 500,000 barrels of oil and gas a day, according to Energy Secretary Chris Wright.
Hamm framed the agreement as an extension of the U.S. shale boom. “We talk about the [U.S. shale] energy renaissance,” Hamm said. “I think this can also be the energy renaissance that’s necessary in Venezuela.” Hamm said he believes the influx of U.S. companies directed by the Trump administration into Venezuela could push the country’s oil production beyond its previous peak of more than 3 million barrels a day from decades ago.
The deal potentially marks another win for Trump as his lieutenants work to shore up oil supply lines in the Western Hemisphere following fallout from the Iran conflict and subsequent Middle East conflicts that closed off some of the global oil market’s most vital arteries, the Journal reported.
“It’s a milestone deal in making the Western Hemisphere the center of the global energy system,” Wright said. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Trump’s strategy shifts the geopolitical center of energy away from the Middle East, the geographic chokepoints that have waylaid oil tankers and “50 years of oil-funded terrorism, 24 terror groups being funded by the country of Iran.”
Lawler said Continental’s deal would put it in one of Venezuela’s greenfield oil patches requiring “a significant amount” of seismic and exploration work. Such fields in Venezuela typically require billions of dollars and years to develop. Lawler did not say how much Continental planned to spend in Venezuela but noted the company prioritizes capital efficiency.
Continental’s potential entry into Venezuela would mark the first big U.S. oil deal there since Chevron said earlier this month it would invest $7 billion through its joint ventures over the next five years. Chevron plans to double its output to 600,000 barrels a day and has scooped up two new oil fields. Italian oil company ENI and smaller players Primavera and Aspect Holdings also signed deals in Caracas.
Continental was one of several U.S. oil companies that had hesitated for months to commit large amounts of capital to Venezuela. Many have held back over legal and financial concerns tied to Venezuela’s nationalization of ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips assets in 2007. At a televised White House meeting in January, Hamm had expressed enthusiasm about exploring in Venezuela but noted the country had challenges and did not commit to investing at the time.
Venezuela says it has the world’s largest oil reserves and produces the type of oil that U.S. Gulf Coast refineries prefer for gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.