Key Takeaways
- The Trump administration is seeking greater U.S. access to Venezuela’s minerals, including gold.
- This effort aims to align Venezuela’s resources with U.S. strategic and economic interests.
- U.S. officials have held meetings with companies to gauge interest in investing in Venezuela’s mining sector.
The Trump administration is expanding its push to gain control and influence over Venezuela’s vast natural resources beyond oil, with a particular focus on minerals such as gold, according to sources familiar with the discussions.
This effort could open the Venezuelan mining sector to U.S. investment and provide access to minerals crucial for national security, the sources said on condition of anonymity.
The administration is considering a range of steps to increase U.S. involvement in Venezuela’s mining sector, including a possible executive order focused on critical minerals, the sources added.
U.S. officials have held meetings with companies to gauge interest in investing in or otherwise participating in Venezuela’s mining sector, according to one of the sources, an executive from a critical minerals firm.
The effort fits into Trump’s broader strategy of reasserting U.S. influence across Latin America and pushing back against China’s expanding economic footprint in the region.
In March, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control authorized certain transactions involving Venezuelan-origin gold, including activities tied to state-owned gold miner Minerven.
Later that month, Treasury broadened the authorization to cover Venezuelan-origin minerals, including gold, while allowing some mining-related services and negotiations of potential investment contracts.
The moves have created a framework for U.S. companies to pursue opportunities in Venezuela’s mining sector as the administration seeks to revive investment.
We are all watching the oil situation closely and recognize there could be a parallel track with critical minerals.
An executive from a critical minerals firm, Meeting with the administration about Venezuela
