The President of the United States, Donald Trump, asserted this Thursday that approximately 50 million barrels of Venezuelan oil will arrive in the city of Houston to be refined as part of his administration's energy strategy.
“We're taking 50 million barrels of oil. They are currently floating in extremely large ships toward Houston,” Trump said during a Republican rally held at an industrial plant in Georgia.
In the event, he described the operation as "fantastic" for Venezuela and for the energy security of the United States, reported EFE.
The president emphasized that the Venezuelan oil in transit responds to agreements reached with the interim authorities of Venezuela, following the capture of former president Nicolás Maduro in January and the recognition of the acting president Delcy Rodríguez by Washington.
This announcement comes at a time when the administration Trump has eased some restrictions on the Venezuelan oil industry and granted new licenses to major energy companies —such as Chevron, BP, Eni, Shell, and Repsol— to operate in the South American country under strict supervision and reporting requirements to the U.S. Treasury.
The new authorizations require that oil contracts be subject to U.S. jurisdiction and that any payments to sanctioned individuals be routed to accounts designated by the Department of the Treasury.
The shipment of these millions of barrels marks a significant shift in energy policy between Washington and Caracas, amid a rebuilding of relations that includes strategic cooperation following Maduro's departure from power and an attempt to attract foreign investment in the Venezuelan oil sector.
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