South America / GoM
Country profile: Venezuela
| Location: | Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, between Colombia and Guyana |
| Climate: | tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands |
| Terrain: | Andes Mountains and Maracaibo Lowlands in northwest; central plains (llanos); Guiana Highlands in southeast |
| Size: | 912050 sq. km total (Land area: 882050 sq. km Water area: 30000 sq.km) |
| Population: | 26,414,815 (July 2008 est.) |
| Languages: | Spanish (official), numerous indigenous dialects |
| Government: | federal republic |
| Capital city: | Caracas |
| Legal system: | open, adversarial court system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Currency: | bolivar (VEB) |
| Licensing: |
Country profile
Venezuela is one of the world’s largest exporters of crude oil and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. In 2006, the country was the sixth-largest net oil exporter in the world. The oil sector is of central importance to the Venezuelan economy: it accounts for more than three-quarters of total Venezuelan export revenues, about half of total government revenues, and around one-third of total gross domestic product (GDP).
Venezuela was a founding member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Natural gas and oil represent the bulk of total energy consumption in Venezuela. After reaching 46 percent of total energy consumption in 1998, the share of natural gas in Venezuela’s oil mix has fallen to 38 percent. During the same period, the share of oil consumption has risen from 32 percent to 38 percent. Hydroelectricity represents the remainder of the country’s energy mix, and Venezuela is well-endowed with hydroelectric potential.
Energy production and consumption
| Oil | Gas | |
| Production: | 2 million bbl/day (2006 est.) | 27 billion bbl (2007 est.) |
| Consumption: | 599,000 bbl/day (2006 est.) | 27 billion bbl (2007 est.) |
| Exports: | 2 million bbl/day (2006 est.) | |
| Imports: | ||
| Reserves: | 79 billion bbl (2007 est.) | 4 trillion cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
| Major fields: |
Venezuela - recent news
| 23 Jul 23 |
Venezuela expects to sign gas licenses by year-end Venezuela expects to sign licenses by year-end for developing the nation's vast natural gas reserves, oil minister Pedro Tellechea said on Friday, even amid U.S. sanctions. |
| 18 Jan 23 |
Venezuela: Geoex MCG signs MoU for Multi-client seismic project in Venezuela Geoex MCG has announced the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding with The People’s Ministry of Petroleum of Venezuela. The MoU’s objective is to support the country's strategy to open the offshore domain for the exploration of liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons and attract international investors. |
| 14 Oct 21 |
Venezuela: INPEX withdraws from Carabobo Project 3 in Venezuela INPEX has announced that Japan Carabobo UK ('JCUK') has submitted a notification of withdrawal from Carabobo Project 3 to the government of Venezuela and the Project partners and has terminated its participation in the Project. JCUK is a subsidiary of Japan Carabobo, which is jointly owned by INPEX, Mitsubishi Corp and JOGMEC. |
| 29 Jul 21 |
Venezuela: Equinor completes divestment of onshore asset in Venezuela Equinor and state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela (PdVSA) have completed a transaction whereby Equinor will transfer its 9.67 per cent non-operated interest in the Petrocedeno project onshore Venezuela to PdVSA. |
| 29 Mar 20 |
Venezuela: Rosneft sells its Venezuelan assets Rosneft has announced the termination of its operations in Venezuela and the disposal of its assets, related to operating in Venezuela. Rosneft has concluded an agreement with the company 100% owned by the Government of the Russian Federation to sell all of its interest. |
Venezuela - more news
Other countries in this region
- Argentina,
- Aruba,
- Bahamas,
- Barbados,
- Belize,
- Bermuda,
- Bolivia,
- Brazil,
- Canada,
- Chile,
- Colombia,
- Costa Rica,
- Cuba,
- Dominican Republic,
- Ecuador,
- Falklands,
- French Guiana,
- Grenada,
- Guatemala,
- Gulf of Mexico,
- Guyana,
- Honduras,
- Jamaica,
- Mexico,
- Nicaragua,
- Panama,
- Paraguay,
- Peru,
- Suriname,
- Trinidad,
- Uruguay,
- USA
