Exxon and Chevron decline new spending in Venezuela while taking a wait-and-see approach for the years ahead

ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods, far right, listens as U.S. President Donald Trump,left, speaks during a meeting with oil company executives in the East Room of the White House on Jan. 9. President Trump is aiming to convince oil executives to support his plans in Venezuela, a country whose energy resources he says he expects to control for years to come. US forces seized Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro in a sweeping military operation on January 3, with Trump making no secret that control of Venezuela's oil was at the heart of his actions. (Credit: Brendan SMIALOWSKI—AFP/Getty Images)

U.S. Big Oil giants Exxon Mobil and Chevron said Jan. 30 they have no plans to increase their capital spending in Venezuela this year while they wait and see how legal and political reforms unfold to make the country more inviting to foreign oil investments.

Since forcibly removing leader Nicolás Maduro from power, President Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted U.S. oil companies will spend more than $100 billion in Venezuela to dramatically rebuild its dilapidated infrastructure. But Exxon Mobil chairman and CEO Darren Woods infamously drew Trump’s ire earlier this month when he told the president that Venezuela is currently “uninvestable” until major reforms are enacted and the country sees real stability. After all, Exxon had its oil assets expropriated in Venezuela less than 20 years ago.