Trump pushes for $100 billion in oil investments in Venezuela while Exxon and others say it’s currently ‘uninvestable’ without major reforms

President Donald Trump said American oil companies—as well as some European players—will spend at least $100 billion in Venezuela to “very rapidly rebuild [its] dilapidated oil industry” and create great wealth during a meeting with top oil executives Jan. 9 at the White House.

But the CEOs of ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, and more quickly put a damper on the message, saying it will take considerable time to enact necessary legal reforms and security measures within the country before they can make any long-term commitments to reenter Venezuela for decades to come.

“Today, it’s uninvestable,” Exxon Chairman and CEO Darren Woods said of Venezuela. “Significant changes have to be made to those commercial frameworks, the legal system. There has to be durable investment protections.”

Woods said Exxon could have a technical team on the ground in Venezuela in less than two weeks to begin assessing the situation. But he was non-commi...