The contract finalizes a transition process initiated April 28, 2026, when Eni and PDVSA signed a framework agreement to dissolve the Petrojunín mixed enterprise. Under that structure, Eni held 40 percent and PDVSA retained 60 percent. The new arrangement aligns with Venezuela’s reformed Organic Hydrocarbons Law approved by the National Assembly in January 2026, which establishes updated terms for foreign participation in the country’s oil sector.
The signing ceremony in Caracas included Venezuelan interim president Delcy Rodríguez, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, Venezuelan Hydrocarbons Minister Paula Henao, PDVSA executive president Héctor Obregón and Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi. The presence of the U.S. energy secretary signals coordination between Washington and Caracas following recent diplomatic shifts.
Eni has operated in Venezuela since 1998 and currently holds six exploration and extraction licenses across the Gulf of Venezuela, Gulf of Paria and Orinoco Belt. The company’s most significant Venezuelan asset remains the offshore Perla gas field, operated through Cardón IV, a 50-50 joint venture with Spain’s Repsol. Perla is Latin America’s largest discovered offshore gas field.
Eni’s 2025 production in Venezuela totaled 64,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, predominantly from Perla, which supplies roughly 35 percent of Venezuela’s total gas consumption. The Junín 5 contract represents a strategic expansion of Eni’s upstream position in heavy crude, complementing its existing gas operations as Venezuela seeks to attract technical and financial capacity to arrested oil fields.
This article was curated and published as part of our South American energy market coverage.
