News
US issues new licenses for oil and mining operations in Venezuela
The US Department of the Treasury, through the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), issued on August 27, 2026, a set of eight amended general licenses and regulatory updates governing the economic operations of certain international companies in Venezuela, according to its own official notice, also reported by Efecto Cocuyo.
The US Department of the Treasury, through the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), issued on August 27, 2026, a set of eight amended general licenses and regulatory updates governing the economic operations of certain international companies in Venezuela, according to its own official notice, also reported by Efecto Cocuyo. The measure represents a easing of restrictions in key sectors such as oil, gas and mining, although it maintains structural restrictions.
A general license is a legal instrument issued by the regulatory authority that authorizes operations under certain conditions in a general manner, without the need to request an individual permit for each transaction. The documents issued include General License 46D for petrochemical products, 47B on the sale of diluents, 48C for goods and services, 50C for oil or gas operations, 51C on minerals and gold, 52B for transactions with Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (Pdvsa), 54B for mining services, and 61A related to telecommunications.
License 50C identifies by name six international oil companies, along with the companies that control them. They are BP PLC, Chevron Corporation, Eni S.p.A., Établissements Maurel & Prom SA, Repsol S.A. and Shell PLC. The text also eases a contractual point: covered agreements no longer have to be subject mandatorily to US law. The counterpart remains in place, because any litigation must be settled outside Venezuela, in courts in the United States, the United Kingdom, France or Singapore.
The regulatory easing precisely defines which activities remain prohibited. Four destinations (Russia, Iran, North Korea and Cuba), sanctioned vessels, and two forms of payment remain outside the permit: gold and cryptocurrencies, the petro among them. In addition, mining license 51C and telecommunications license 61A exclude the creation of new joint ventures within Venezuela. In the case of mining, License 51C limits its scope to processing, refining and marketing.
As for the financial oversight mechanism, the licenses require authorized companies to submit detailed reports directly to OFAC and not to the Venezuelan government. These reports must declare the parties involved, the goods, quantities, values, dates and payments made to Venezuela. Additionally, the outlet El Nacional reported on arbitration claims and debts linked to the mining sector amounting to $1.26 billion, reflecting the complex corporate negotiations surrounding the return of extractive activity to the country.