Venezuela's Two Major Oilfields Signed, Planned Investment of US$3.5 Billion to Restore Production

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On October 7, U.S. energy company Pacific Coast Energy Company (PCEC) announced an oilfield development agreement reached with Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA, under which it will be responsible for the production restoration and subsequent development of two onshore heavy oil blocks in Venezuela, Delta and Cabimas, with a planned cumulative investment of US$3.5 billion over the contract period. PCEC took over operations of the relevant oilfields in the third quarter of 2026 and is currently carrying out the restoration of shut-in wells, rig deployment, and replacement of oil production equipment. The company plans to increase the daily production of the two blocks from 19,300 barrels to approximately 40,000 barrels within the next six months.

The two parties are cooperating under a Production Participation Contract (CPP). Under the contractual arrangement, PCEC has obtained full operational control of the relevant projects and is responsible for oilfield technical management, funding arrangements, and commercial operations. The redevelopment plan agreed upon by both parties includes restarting existing wells, updating downhole production equipment, and adjusting subsequent production plans. According to PCEC's development forecast, the relevant blocks could reach a maximum daily production of 150,000 to 160,000 barrels in the future, and the plan is to maintain this production level for more than 10 years. The plan has not yet reached the target production level.

The Cabimas block has launched a production restoration plan for 900 wells, for which PCEC has deployed 4 additional rigs; previously, the project had no available rig equipment. More than 50 wells in the two blocks have now resumed production. The Delta block has launched a plan to replace electric submersible pumps in 37 wells. The first new electric submersible pump was delivered less than 30 days after taking over operations, and it is also the first new electric submersible pump procured for this block in eight years.

As of the announcement, PCEC has committed US$80 million for equipment materials and oilfield services, involving 18 local material suppliers and 35 service providers. The company has also hired more than 1,000 local workers to participate in operations and well restoration work. The above funds are current equipment and service expenditures, which differ from the contract's full-cycle planned capital expenditure basis.

According to the oilfield redevelopment plan reached by both parties, PCEC plans to increase the average recovery factor of the relevant oilfields from 13% to 16%–18%, corresponding to a planned cumulative total production of approximately 1 billion barrels. The above recovery factor and cumulative production are both development plan targets, which still need to be gradually implemented through continuous well restoration, equipment renewal, and reservoir development operations.