Maurel & Prom to restart Venezuelan oil activity

Maurel & Prom have signed agreements to revive oil production at its assets in Venezuela, the French E&P company announced on Wednesday.

The agreements include redevelopment of its Urdaneta Oeste field in the Lake Maracaibo area with plans to boost oil production from its current 16,000 bpd to 25,000 bpd by the end of 2023.

The company plans to ramp up production in the following year.

Maurel & Prom’s permit for the Urdaneta Oeste field is valid until 2041, with 422 million barrels of oil approved for development as of the end of 2022.

The signed agreements also include paying off the outstanding debt from the company’s 80%-controlled entity M&P Iberoamerica.

“We are delighted to be able to announce the full resumption of our operations in Venezuela, which we have been working towards for some years – it confirms the validity of our long-term growth strategy,” said Olivier de Langavant, CEO of Maurel & Prom.

The USA rolled back sanctions on Venezuela in October 2023.