CARACAS, February 13. /TASS/. Venezuela seeks to strengthen long-term cooperation with the US in the oil and gas sector and aims to become the world’s largest oil producer, interim President Delcy Rodriguez said during a visit to the joint US-Venezuelan venture Petro Independencia with US Energy Secretary Chris Wright.
"We want to transform Venezuela from the country with the largest oil reserves into the world’s largest oil producer," Rodriguez said on Venezolana de Television. She added that deeper long-term and productive cooperation with the US in the oil and gas industry would benefit both nations. "Such cooperation should serve the interests of the Venezuelan and US people," she noted. Rodriguez also stressed that Venezuela is ready to welcome investors from the US and other countries.
The Petro Independencia joint venture between Venezuela’s state oil and gas company PDVSA and the US firm Chevron operates in the Orinoco Oil Belt, producing and processing about 40,000 barrels of extra-heavy oil per day.
During the visit, Chevron representatives said the field could eventually reach production of up to 300,000 barrels per day. They noted that this level could be achieved through the extraction and processing of extra-heavy oil under the energy recovery plan promoted by the US administration. The company also presented updates on other projects, including the Petropiar joint venture between Chevron and PDVSA.