President Donald Trump said Sunday he is “inclined” to exclude ExxonMobil from participating in Venezuela’s oil sector after its chief executive expressed serious doubts about investing in the country following the removal of former President Nicolás Maduro.
Speaking to reporters as he left West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump said he was disappointed with Exxon’s response during a meeting with major U.S. oil company leaders and warned the company may be kept out of U.S.-led reconstruction and investment plans. “I didn’t like Exxon’s response,” he said. “They’re playing too cute.”
At the White House meeting Friday, Exxon’s CEO Darren Woods described Venezuela as “uninvestable” under its current legal and commercial conditions and said significant changes would be needed before his company could commit to investment.
Trump has been pushing U.S. oil firms to help revive Venezuela’s beleaguered energy industry since Maduro’s ouster, telling executives they would work directly with the United States rather than the Venezuelan government.
On Friday, Trump also signed an executive order aimed at safeguarding Venezuelan oil revenues held in U.S. Treasury accounts from judicial seizure, saying allowing such actions could damage U.S. efforts to stabilise the country’s economy.
The administration is framing its involvement in Venezuela’s oil sector as an economic priority, including control over sales of millions of barrels of previously sanctioned crude and encouraging U.S. companies to invest in rebuilding the infrastructure.
