Donald Trump promised that his Venezuelan conquest will end with great returns in oil, if nothing else. But recent statements from oil company executives prove that they are not as interested in joining Trump’s Venezuelan oil extraction agenda as it might have been previously suggested.
Trump has recently claimed that his administration will extract 50 million barrels from Venezuela, which he said will be controlled by him. But first, Trump stated that he would need a $100 billion investment from all the industry-leading oil companies. The administration was already prematurely celebrating the operation as a resounding success.
According to CNN, it became quickly apparent that things were going awry when the administration had a lengthy meeting in which none of the oil companies were willing to make any major financial commitment to rehabilitate the reportedly poor state of the Venezuelan oil industry. ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods told Trump officials, “It’s uninvestible. There are a number of legal and commercial frameworks that would have to be established to even understand what kind of returns we would get on the investment.”
Trump’s promise to the nation — even to his skeptics — was that this would at least lead to the cost of living in America dropping lower. Among his myriad of promises, a lowering of gas pump prices to below $2 per gallon finally seemed plausible, with the method used to get there being the only point of contention. But the tepid response from the oil industry suggests that this story will probably be more complicated than the administration initially thought.
Saying the Trump meeting with the oil executives didn’t go according to plan is an understatement. At some point during the meeting, Trump got distracted and walked to the window, urging the oil executives to check out his “big beautiful ballroom.” But the oil executives were instead looking for security guarantees that would outlive a Trump presidency. After all, the only way a $100 billion investment could work is if the returns are long term.
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) January 10, 2026
Trump suddenly interrupted a meeting with oil executives
“Hold on, I need to look at my beautiful ballroom” — then got up and walked to the door.
“Wow. What a view! This is the door to the ballroom!” pic.twitter.com/5VzlvTIy02
In addition to the security guarantees, the oil company executives reportedly also want financial guarantees. Normally, that would not be an issue. Under the old pre-Hugo Chávez regimes, American companies were there as private contractors who were exposed to the free market — their profits or loss depended solely on how good they were at selling oil. But Trump’s announcement declared that he personally, as the president, would be responsible for how the money extracted from Venezuela will be spent.
Still, Trump claims that even though the rest of Venezuela’s regime remains the same, oil companies can rest assured that they will be ready to cooperate with Trump’s demands. That goes for the end of the alleged drug trafficking, the end of despotic rule, and safety guarantees.
Trump was negotiating hard and at one point even told the executives, “If you don’t want to go in, just let me know, because I’ve got 25 people that aren’t here today who are willing to take your place.” So, as things stand, the president has to ensure the country is under some form of occupation to guarantee the oil executives a conducive business environment. That could play horribly in the long term.
