CARACAS - Caracas has temporarily suspended 19 oil and gas production-sharing contracts signed under the government of Nicolás Maduro, with the Venezuelan and U.S. governments now jointly reviewing the agreements and weighing whether some should be revoked, according to sources cited by Reuters.
The suspension — ordered by Venezuela’s oil ministry — applies to contracts signed with a range of private companies during years when U.S. sanctions were in place. Several of these firms are little-known or registered in tax haven jurisdictions, raising concerns in both Caracas and Washington.
Despite the freeze, there has been no reported disruption to Venezuela’s oil and gas output so far. State oil giant Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) continues to market and sell crude produced under the affected contracts while they remain under review.
Officials from both governments are scrutinizing the credentials of companies that entered into the production-sharing deals. Some of the agreements involve projects in areas such as Lake Maracaibo, the heavy-oil Orinoco Belt, and smaller mature fields, according to industry sources.
The move comes amid a broader overhaul of Venezuela’s oil regulatory framework. In late January, the country’s National Assembly passed reforms to its hydrocarbon law aimed at facilitating foreign investment in its aging oil industry. That reform gives the government a six-month window to review existing contracts, which partially explains the timing of the current suspension.
The U.S. has also modified its approach to Venezuelan energy in recent months. Since the capture of Maduro in January — and the resulting shift in control over Venezuela’s oil exports — the U.S. Treasury Department has issued general licenses allowing some firms to trade Venezuelan oil and operate in its energy sector under specific clearance requirements.
The outcome of the joint Caracas–Washington review will be closely watched by energy markets and investors, as it could determine the fate of dozens of foreign-linked contracts and influence future crude production and export arrangements.