President Trump is considering a move to extend Chevron’s license to pump oil in Venezuela and slap other nations looking to do business in the South American nation with fresh tariffs, according to a report.
Trump had ordered the US oil giant to wind down its operations in Venezuela earlier this month, but during a White House meeting with Chevron CEO Mike Wirth and other top executives on Wednesday, the president said he was open to reversing his decision, sources familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal.
As part of any potential move to extend the license, Trump’s team is working out the details of a plan to levy tariffs or another kind of financial penalty on other countries that buy oil from Venezuela, the sources said.
“Chevron executives meet regularly with government officials in Washington to engage constructively on issues related to our business – both in the US and abroad,” a Chevron spokesperson told The Post in a statement.
They added that the company conducts its business to comply with global laws and regulations.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Chevron has warned that leaving Venezuela could open the door for China to tap into its oil resources. The potential tariffs are an attempt to quash any encroaching nations, sources told the Journal.
The plan was discussed with Trump and Wirth, as well as Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, according to the report.
Lutnick reportedly told Wirth that the tariffs could force Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro back to the negotiating table, the Journal said.
The potential to place more pressure on Maduro could be a convincing factor for Trump, who has been battling to get the Maduro regime to accept migrants who have flooded into the US.
Wirth has been lobbying Trump officials after the president issued the decree. He spoke privately this week with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and staffers from the National Security Council, asking for a deadline extension of at least 60 days past the current April 3 deadline, sources told the Journal.
Rubio told Wirth during a call on Monday that he thought Chevron should wind down operations by the original deadline, sources told the Journal.
Several Republican lawmakers have praised Trump for reversing the Biden-era waiver that allowed Chevron to pump oil in the Maduro-controlled nation.
They have argued that Venezuela’s economy is propped up by Chevron’s operations, and have sought a wind-down to place more pressure on Maduro.
Trump accused Maduro of not making progress on electoral reforms and migrant returns when he initially announced the 30-day deadline earlier this month.
It was a stark U-turn from January, when the White House appeared to be making progress with Maduro. White House special envoy Richard Grenell had met with the Venezuelan president and returned with six Americans who had been held prisoner in the nation.
During the visit, Maduro had reportedly agreed to accept deportation flights of migrants if oil licenses were kept in place, according to the Journal.
