Venezuela, in the midst of a humanitarian crisis of epic proportions, would need $58 billion to return its oil industry to its former glory and 1998 production levels, according to a PDVSA document seen by Reuters. The February 2021 document titled Investment Opportunities and authored by PDVSA’s planning and engineering division revealed its need for cash from the Venezuelan government and from foreign partners to restore its energy infrastructure. Venezuela’s production has sunk from more than 3 million barrels per day pre-Hugo Chavez to just over half a million barrels today. According to the document, PDVSA engineering wanted to use PSAs as the vehicle to improve the oil giant’s oil production. In this theoretical-at-best scenario, PDVSA contractors would 100% finance oilfield operations. As compensation, these not-so-risk-averse contractors would receive part of the free cash flow. But foreign oil companies have been down this road before, and many were burned […]