Chevron Stock Spikes Along With Major Oil Companies as Trump Signals Takeover of Venezuela's Energy Sector

Chevron shares surged nearly 8% in premarket trading, lifting other major U.S. oil companies, with Exxon Mobil jumping 4%, after President Donald Trump said U.S. energy firms would play a central role in taking over and rebuilding Venezuela's oil sector following the ouster of President Nicolas Maduro.

Speaking Saturday from his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, Trump said U.S. investment in Venezuela's vast oil resources is a key objective of the new U.S.-led transition. He emphasized that America's largest oil companies would move in, deploy billions of dollars, and repair the country's severely damaged energy infrastructure.

"We're going to have our very large United States oil companies — the biggest anywhere in the world — go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure," Trump said. "Let's start making money for the country."

Venezuela holds the world's largest proven oil reserves, estimated at 303 billion barrels, or about 17% of global reserves, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Chevron is currently the only major U.S. oil company operating in the country, exporting roughly 140,000 barrels per day in the fourth quarter of 2025, based on data from energy consultancy Kpler.

U.S. forces captured Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, overnight during a large-scale military operation. Both have been indicted on drug-trafficking charges in the Southern District of New York. Trump said the United States will temporarily run Venezuela during a transition period, though he provided few details, and confirmed that the existing U.S. oil embargo remains in place.

Chevron said it is closely monitoring the situation. "We remain focused on the safety and wellbeing of our employees, as well as the integrity of our assets," the company said, adding that it continues to operate in full compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

Trump said oil companies would initially cover the cost of rebuilding Venezuela's crude infrastructure but would ultimately be reimbursed. "We're going to get the oil flowing the way it should be," he said, adding that Venezuela's output could eventually be sold to a wider range of global buyers.

Venezuela's oil production peaked at about 3.5 million barrels per day in the late 1990s but has since collapsed to around 800,000 barrels per day, according to Kpler. By comparison, U.S. production stood near 13.8 million barrels per day in late December.

Analysts cautioned that near-term disruptions remain possible. With uncertainty over control in Caracas, some buyers may hesitate to lift Venezuelan crude. However, Chevron is expected to continue exports, which could help limit supply shocks.

Security risks on the ground also remain a concern, particularly for production facilities and export infrastructure. Still, analysts noted that the global oil market is currently oversupplied, which could help absorb any temporary disruptions stemming from Venezuela's political upheaval.