Jan. 9 at 9:57 PM
PickAlpha Mid-Day:
Trump met ~20 US oil executives at the White House and pushed them to commit
$100B+ to restart/invest in Venezuela’s oil sector post-Maduro (reported). Executives signaled reluctance: Exxon’s Darren Woods called Venezuela “uninvestible” without durable legal/commercial protections, and Conoco’s Ryan Lance cited roughly
$12B in prior losses (reported). Trump floated US “security guarantees” and said firms would deal with the US directly, while also saying prior losses won’t be covered (reported).
Tickers:
$XOM $CVX $COP
Our view is the market is trading contract enforceability + capital protection, not barrels — without a credible legal/fiscal framework, “
$100B” is a soundbite. If Washington delivers real, durable protections, CVX/COP have the cleanest near-term optionality; if not, this stays headline vol and Venezuela supply remains a slow, conditional drip.
