Trump: 'We're Open for Business' on Venezuelan Oil

President Donald Trump said Friday that American energy companies have agreed to spend $100 billion to rebuild Venezuela's tattered oil infrastructure and that Caracas has agreed to let the U.S. "immediately" begin refining and selling up to 50 million barrels of crude oil.

"We're open for business," Trump said following a meeting with executives from 14 oil companies at the White House. His comments aired live on Newsmax and the Newsmax2 free online streaming platform.

"China can buy all the oil they want from us [in Venezuela] or in the United States," Trump said.

"Russia can get all the oil they need from us. And they do like oil, even though they produce a lot of it.

"But China and Russia and everybody else is able to go, and we'll be open for business almost immediately," he said.

Trump was joined by Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Energy Secretary Chris Wright, and executives from such companies as ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, and Chevron — the only major U.S. oil company currently operating in Venezuela.

"The plan is for them to spend, meaning our giant oil companies will be spending at least $100 billion of their money, not the government's money," Trump said.

"They don't need government money, but they need government protection and need government security that when they spend all this money, it's going to be there.

"So they get their money back and make a very nice return. The plan is for them to spend at least $100 billion to rebuild the capacity and the infrastructure necessary," he said.

Trump said Venezuela has also agreed that the United States will immediately begin refining and selling up to 50 million barrels of Venezuelan crude oil, "which will continue indefinitely."

"We're all set to do it. We have the refining capacity [that] was actually based very much on the Venezuelan oil, which is a heavy oil, very good oil, great oil," he said.

"It's fantastic for certain things like asphalt roads, the best there is in the world for asphalt roads and other things."

Trump said all of the oil companies that attended the meeting are going to be "treasured partners" in bringing Venezuela "back to life," restoring its economy, and "generating great wealth for their companies and for their people, and also great wealth for the American people and tremendous wealth for the companies that are going in."

"I have a feeling the $100 billion will be spent very, very rapidly by these very big, powerful, and rich companies. And I think they're going to be able to rebuild the infrastructure," Trump said.

"And I hope it's going to be brand new as opposed to a rehab, because I know the tremendous difference between the new and the not-so-new in your industry. The new is much more beautiful, much better in every way."

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