More Trickle Than Gusher: OFAC's New Rules Do Not Quite Signal New Venezuelan Oil Rush

In the month since the U.S. took custody of Venezuelan President, Nicolas Maduro, the U.S. oil industry has been buzzing with rumors and speculation on what new opportunities may lie just south of the Caribbean. Venezuela is estimated to hold the largest crude oil reserve of any single country, and it has been reported that many in the industry—from oilfield services majors to independent wildcatters—are considering whether and how they might tap into the potential.

On January 29, 2026, the U.S. Treasury opened the door for certain U.S. participants. . . but they did not open it very far. A new general license authorizes certain previously-prohibited U.S. support for the Venezuelan oil industry, but does not provide for the kind of new investment, development, or exploration that may be on the minds of those hoping to see and be part of a new oil rush.

Nevertheless, an expansion of authorized trading, refining, and logistics activity may be an early step toward reopening trade from which U.S. companies have been prohibited for years.

The Venezuela General License

On January 29, 2026, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control ("OFAC") issued General License 46 ("GL 46"), which authorizes a certain, limited set of transactions that are otherwise prohibited under the Venezuela Sanctions Regulations, 31 C.F.R. Part 591, as follows: transactions that are ordinarily incident and necessary to the lifting, exportation, reexportation, sale, resale, supply, storage, marketing, purchase, delivery, transportation, and refining of Venezuelan-origin oil, including transactions involving the Government of Venezuela, Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. ("PdVSA"), and PdVSA-owned entities (50 percent or greater ownership), subject to certain conditions.

Scope of the GL 46

The GL applies only to activities conducted by an "established U.S. entity," defined as an entity organized under U.S. law on or before January 29, 2025. The authorized activities include:

• shipping and logistics arrangements,
• chartering vessels,
• marine insurance and P&I coverage,
• port and terminal services (including with Venezuelan port authorities), and
• commercially reasonable swaps of crude oil, diluents, or refined products.

Conditions on GL 46

GL 46 imposes several structural requirements that further limit the activity authorized under the General License.

• Contractual requirement. Contracts with the Government of Venezuela, PdVSA, or PdVSA entities must be governed by U.S. law, and eventual disputes must be resolved in the United States.
• Payments requirement. Payments to blocked persons must be made to the Foreign Government Deposit Funds or another account designated by Treasury.
• Reporting requirements. Any person that exports, sells, or supplies Venezuelan-origin oil to countries other than the United States must submit reports to the U.S. Department of State and Department of Energy¹ within 10 days after the first covered transaction and every 90 days thereafter when the transaction is ongoing. Reports must detail parties, volumes, values, destinations, dates, and payments (taxes, fees or other payments) to the Government of Venezuela.

Limitations

GL 46 authorizes only transactions that are "ordinarily incident and necessary" to the covered oil activities and does not create a broader authorization to transact freely with the Government of Venezuela or PdVSA. The license expressly excludes several categories of transactions and counterparties.

GL 46 does not authorize:

• Payment terms that are not commercially reasonable, including debt swaps, payments in gold, or payments denominated in digital currency, digital coin, or digital tokens issued by or on behalf of the Government of Venezuela (including the petro);
• Transactions involving persons located in or organized under the laws of Russia, Iran, North Korea, or Cuba, or entities owned or controlled by, or in joint venture with, such persons;
• Transactions involving Venezuelan or U.S. entities owned or controlled by, or in joint venture with, persons located in or organized under the laws of China;
• The unblocking of property blocked pursuant to the Venezuela Sanctions Regulations; or
• Any transaction involving a blocked vessel.

GL 46 also does not expressly authorize "new investment" in Venezuelan oil or gas projects and does not address the gas or petrochemical sectors. Activities outside the "ordinarily incident and necessary" standard will likely require a separate, specific license.

Unlike some of the other General Licenses applicable to Venezuela, GL 46 does not include a stated expiration date. However, OFAC may amend or revoke the authorization at any time.

Takeaways

GL 46 provides a targeted and conditional authorization. It does not broadly reopen Venezuela's oil sector or permit unrestricted dealings with the Government of Venezuela or PdVSA. Instead, GL 46 authorizes only transactions that are ordinarily incident and necessary to specified oil trading, refining, logistics, and transportation activities and subjects those transactions to strict contractual, payment, and reporting conditions.

We note that GL 46 is far from a safe harbor for Venezuela business. It is narrowly tailored to specified activity with strict limitations and conditions. Activities that extend beyond routine commercial operations, such as upstream development, new investment, expansion projects, or transactions involving restricted counterparties, would fall outside the scope of GL 46's authorization and would require separate specific licenses from OFAC.

Footnote

1 Reports must be sent to the following email addresses: Sanctions_inbox@state.gov and VZReporting@doe.gov

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.