U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright has visited areas damaged by the June earthquakes in Venezuela, describing the destruction and loss of life as “heartbreaking”.
Wright travelled to the affected sites on Wednesday, 2 September, following the signing of major energy agreements in Caracas involving Chevron, Eni, GE Vernova and other foreign producers aimed at expanding oil output and attracting investment.
“It’s heartbreaking to see the number of collapsed buildings and what that meant to the people that lived in those buildings. Certainly plenty of survivors in some of these buildings, but a lot of life was lost,” Wright said.
During his visit, Wright met with Kit Miyamoto, a Japanese engineer and CEO of Miyamoto International, a California-based global engineering and humanitarian aid organisation.
The agreements signed in Caracas are part of efforts to increase Venezuela’s oil production and encourage foreign investment in the country’s energy sector.
The deals are separate from a controversial agreement between Caracas and Washington involving North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP).
The NABEP agreement gives the United States access to a fifth of Venezuela’s oil reserves. However, critics have questioned 14 contracts awarded to the company, arguing that they were granted without a competitive process.
Wright defended the agreement, saying the U.S. government had negotiated the deal carefully and would ensure strict oversight of business operations.
“The United States government negotiated this deal very carefully. We take business practices and confidence in operations extremely seriously. The majority of the directors of the companies will be American. We will have very strict controls over the flow of funds in the business and how business operations are conducted,” Wright said.
Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez also defended the agreement and said the government was continuing talks with Washington over sanctions.
“We are still working with the American authorities to definitely lift sanctions,” Rodriguez said.
The U.S. has been leading a $100 billion investment plan that officials say could help double Venezuela’s oil output in the coming years.
Venezuela currently produces around 1.25 million barrels of oil per day, significantly below its peak production of three million barrels per day recorded in the late 1990s.
The government and international energy companies are seeking to expand production and restore investment in a sector that has faced years of decline due to economic challenges, sanctions and underinvestment.
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