US Oil Majors' Shares Rise On Potential Oil Access In Venezuela

U.S. oil companies' shares jumped on Monday, fuelled by the prospect of access to Venezuela's vast oil reserves after President Donald Trump said the U.S. would take control of the South American nation following the arrest of its president.

Venezuela holds the world's largest oil reserves, but production plummeted in recent decades due to mismanagement, limited foreign investment following the nationalisation of its oil industry and sanctions.

Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday that he spoke to "all" of the U.S. oil companies "before and after" American forces seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from Caracas about his plans for investing in the country.

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"They want to go in so badly," Trump said. "We're going to have the big oil companies going, and they're going to fix the infrastructure. They're going to invest money. We're not going to invest anything."

The Trump administration have told U.S. oil executives in recent weeks that they would need to return to Venezuela quickly and invest significant capital in the country to revive the damaged oil industry if they wanted compensation for assets expropriated by Venezuela two decades ago, Reuters previously reported.

Shares of Chevron, the only U.S. major currently operating in Venezuela's oil fields, climbed 6.5% in premarket trading, while refiners Marathon Petroleum, Phillips 66, Valero Energy and PBF Energy were up between 4% and 11%.

Oil prices, however, were largely flat on Monday, as ample global supplies continued to weigh on the market despite the uncertainty surrounding Venezuelan flows. Trump has said that the embargo on all Venezuelan oil exports would stay fully in effect for now.

Venezuelan crude is a heavy sour with high sulphur content, making it suitable for producing diesel and heavier fuels, albeit at lower margins compared with other grades, particularly those from the Middle East.

"This type of crude aligns well with the configuration of U.S. Gulf Coast refineries, which were historically designed to process such grades," said Ahmad Assiri, research strategist at Pepperstone.

Chevron's existing presence in Venezuela under a U.S. waiver has positioned it as a potential early beneficiary of any policy shift, while refiners stand to gain from increased availability of heavy crude closer to home.

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