Eni Announces $1.5 Billion Annual Investment in Venezuela’s Junin 5 Oil Field
Italian energy company Eni (NYSE:E) has signed a new 25-year production sharing agreement with Venezuela's state-owned PDVSA for the development of the Junín 5 heavy oil field, located in the Orinoco Belt. The deal makes Eni the exclusive operator and grants it control over technical, financial, and commercial management. Eni plans to invest $1.5 billion annually starting from September 2026 to expand production at Junín 5, which holds an estimated 35 billion barrels of certified oil but currently produces only around 12,000 barrels per day. Eni has been operating in Venezuela since 1998 and produced about 64,000 boepd there in 2025. The project had previously stalled due to sanctions and payment disputes with PDVSA but is now part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to attract foreign energy companies back into Venezuela's oil sector. Eni also recently signed an agreement for increased output at its Cardón IV gas project, including the Perla field. CEO Claudio Descalzi emphasized that this deal supports global and local energy security while reinforcing Eni’s long-standing presence in a politically complex market.
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