Petrobras considers investing in Venezuela after US sanctions are lifted

The president of Petrobras, Jean Paul Prates, said this Thursday (19) that he is “seriously” considering investing in Venezuela’s oil industry after the United States suspended sanctions against the country for six months. The state-owned company has done business in the neighboring country in the past, as a partner in PDVSA in exploration projects and in the Abreu e Lima Refinery, in Pernambuco, the target of investigations in the Lava Jato operation.

“We are going to put Venezuela on the map again. A [suspensão] of sanctions inspire us to seriously consider investments in Venezuela. And, absolutely, for the love of God, it has nothing to do with ideological or political issues that may exist between countries, between leaders, etc.,” he said in an interview with Epbr Agency.

This investment is justified, he says, because Venezuela is “the largest oil reserve in the world, larger than that of Saudi Arabia”. “Sometimes people either don’t know or even forget about it, and they are in great need of investment there,” he added.

Prates assesses that the suspension of sanctions by the US is a strategic decision aimed at the future shortage of oil in the world. For him, the country is “looking 30 years ahead, they are not looking now”. “Venezuela is one of the countries that is able to produce the last drops of oil in the world. If you delay this process, you will miss the train of history”, justifies the intention to invest in the country.

He also stated that the possibility of investment in Venezuela is just beginning and that the state-owned company has not analyzed the possibilities. The executive stated, however, that this is a demand that will arrive.

“Also because President Lula has an important leadership role in Latin America, it is expected of him. This demand will come to him, if it hasn’t already arrived, of ‘look, what can we in Latin America do with this’”, he stated.

According to Jean Paul Prates, Petrobras also sees the possibility of investing in other South American countries with “important energy resources”, such as Bolivia, Argentina and Colombia.

“We need to organize this here. We will be important protagonists. We Brazil and within Brazil, Petrobras will be the protagonist in the discussions. And then we will make the decisions. You asked ‘does it influence plans?’ It will certainly have an influence”, he added.

Still during the interview, Prates stated that Petrobras had already signaled interest in investing in Venezuela, especially after the North American oil company Chevron resumed actions in the country even amid US sanctions.