Flames rise from flare stacks at the Amuay refinery in Los Taques, Venezuela, January 14, 2026. (Photo by AP)
Press TV UK
July 24, 2026
The administration of US President Donald Trump has collected billions of dollars in Venezuelan oil revenues while withholding control of the funds from the crisis-hit country, according to a report.
An investigation published by the Financial Times on Wednesday estimated that Washington has collected more than $13 billion from Venezuelan oil exports since taking control of the country’s oil sales in January, following the abduction of President Nicolás Maduro Moros.
The report said the revenues were expected to provide a major boost to Venezuela’s economy, where oil accounts for roughly one-quarter of national output.
However, despite the sharp rise in oil income, Venezuela’s economic recovery has remained weak, raising questions over Washington’s control of the revenues and whether the funds have reached the Venezuelan economy.
The report highlighted that only one transfer of $300 million has been publicly recorded on a Venezuelan government website created to monitor the US-controlled oil revenues.
It also highlighted conflicting statements from Washington regarding who controls the funds and how they are being managed.
A January executive order described the US role as merely holding the money in a custodial capacity, yet Trump later boasted that Washington was “making a lot of money” from Venezuelan oil.
He cited oil revenues as one of the benefits of the US aggression against Venezuela, saying, “48 minutes to win that war,” and claiming, “We brought millions of barrels of oil out,” after taking control of the country’s oil exports.
A senior State Department official, Michael Kozak told Congress in April that roughly $3 billion had been transferred to Venezuela. However, lawmakers later said they had received no further disclosures regarding the funds.
The lack of transparency has prompted lawmakers from Republican and Democratic party to demand answers, with Republican Representative Maria Elvira Salazar calling on the administration to publicly disclose how the funds are being used and ensure greater financial accountability.
Democratic Congressman Joaquin Castro said “Trump’s invasion of Venezuela has been about oil, power and graft from the very beginning, with billions of dollars in Venezuelan oil revenue being controlled by the Trump administration without transparency or safeguards.”
The report said questions over the management of the revenues have become even more urgent following the devastating earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24.
The United Nations estimated that damage to buildings and infrastructure alone amounted to approximately $37 billion.
Despite the country’s extensive reconstruction needs, the report found no public evidence that the overwhelming majority of the oil revenues collected by Washington have reached Caracas.
Economist Francisco Rodríguez told the newspaper that Venezuela’s first-quarter growth of only 2.5 percent, the weakest rate in nearly five years, suggested that the United States was retaining control of the oil revenues.
Former opposition lawmaker and economist José Guerra raised similar concerns, saying that Venezuelan oil revenues should have been substantially higher and asking: “Where is the money? There is no transparency and the US government does not inform us.”
The report added that the estimated $13 billion figure covers only oil exports and does not include revenues from Venezuelan mining exports, some of which US officials have acknowledged are also being collected by the Trump administration.
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