LatinNews Daily - 19 January 2026

Venezuela: On 9 January US President Donald Trump met with executives from leading oil companies as part of a drive for firms to invest at least US$100bn in Venezuela’s oil infrastructure. The meeting included the executives of oil firms including Chevron, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, Continental Resources, and Halliburton (all US), Shell (UK), Repsol (Spain), and Eni (Italy). In the meeting, which was recorded and released by the White House, Trump stated that he had gathered executives “to discuss how these great American companies can help rapidly rebuild Venezuela’s dilapidated oil industry and bring millions of barrels of oil production to benefit the United States, the people of Venezuela and the entire world.” In an attempt to allay fears surrounding the security situation in Venezuela following the capture of former president Nicolás Maduro (2013-2026) on 3 January, Trump promised “total safety, total security”, and affirmed that companies would be “dealing with us directly” and “not dealing with Venezuela at all.” Amid his calls for investment, Trump warned the executives that “if you don’t want to go in, just let me know because I’ve got 25 people that aren’t here today that are willing to take your place.” Reactions were muted, however. ExxonMobil’s CEO Darren Woods said that “if we look at the legal and commercial constructs [and] frameworks in place today in Venezuela… it’s uninvestable”, warning that “significant changes have to be made to those commercial frameworks, the legal system, there has to be durable investment protections, and there has to be a change to the hydrocarbon laws in the country”. Venezuela’s new President Delcy Rodríguez announced plans to reform the hydrocarbons law on 16 January. Trump hit back at Woods’ comments, telling reporters on 11 January that “I’ll probably be inclined to keep Exxon out. I didn’t like their response. They’re playing too cute.”