Journalism of Courage
Presents
Co-presented by
Associate Sponsor
Donald Trump says he might keep Exxon out of Venezuela after CEO called it ‘uninvestable’
Woods said that Exxon needed durable investment protections introduced and the country's hydrocarbons law also needed to be reformed.
2 min readJan 12, 2026 06:54 AM IST
First published on: Jan 12, 2026 at 06:54 AM IST
Share
The logo of American multinational oil and gas corporation ExxonMobil is seen during the LNG 2023 energy trade show in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo: X/@Reuters) US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he might block Exxon Mobil from investing in Venezuela after the oil major’s CEO called the country “uninvestable” during a White House meeting last week.
Exxon CEO Darren Woods told Trump that Venezuela would need to change its laws before it could be an attractive investment opportunity, during a White House meeting on Friday with other oil executives. His comments were a blow to Trump’s goal of convincing US oil firms to spend billions of dollars to revitalize Venezuela’s oil industry.
“I didn’t like Exxon’s response,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on his way back to Washington on Sunday. “I’ll probably be inclined to keep Exxon out. I didn’t like their response. They’re playing too cute.”
Exxon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“We’ve had our assets seized there twice, and so you can imagine to re-enter a third time would require some pretty significant changes from what we’ve historically seen here,” Woods told Trump at the White House on Friday.
Story continues below this ad
Woods said that Exxon needed durable investment protections introduced and the country’s hydrocarbons law also needed to be reformed. “If we look at the legal and commercial constructs and frameworks in place today in Venezuela today, it’s uninvestable,” he said at the time.
Share
