Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries is holding discussions with US government officials on the possibility of purchasing oil from Venezuela, according to two sources familiar with the matter, Reuters reported.
The talks are taking place with officials from the US State Department and the Treasury Department, the sources said, against the backdrop of a dramatically changed political and security situation in Venezuela following a recent US military operation.
Reliance Industries, owned by Ambani—one of the world’s leading energy traders—operates the world’s largest oil refinery complex at Jamnagar in India’s Gujarat state. Together with another refinery in the same state, Reliance has the capacity to process about 1.4 million barrels of crude oil per day.
Venezuela is one of the world’s most oil-rich countries, holding nearly one-fifth of global underground oil reserves. The United States first imposed sanctions on Venezuelan oil during former President Donald Trump’s first term in 2016, restrictions that largely remained in place under President Joe Biden. However, during the Biden administration, Reliance obtained a special license from Washington to import Venezuelan crude.
While details of Reliance’s purchases were not fully disclosed, documents from Venezuela’s state-owned oil company PDVSA show that between January and April 2025, Reliance received around 63,000 barrels of oil per day from Venezuela. The last shipment reportedly arrived in May last year.
On January 3, US forces carried out a military operation in Caracas, detaining Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, and transferring them to New York. US authorities have accused both of involvement in drug trafficking, and they are currently being held in a federal detention facility pending trial.
Following the operation, Trump said the United States would oversee Venezuela’s oil resources and assign US companies to manage oil production and sales. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio later stated that Washington would control Venezuela’s oil assets for an indefinite period.
According to US officials, Reliance Industries has expressed interest in jointly participating with American companies in Venezuela’s oil production and export operations, subject to approval from the Trump administration.
Reuters said it contacted Reliance Industries for comment, but the company declined to respond.
Source: Reuters
