Trump weighs extending Chevron's license for Venezuela operations, sources say

(Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is considering a plan to extend Chevron's license to pump oil in Venezuela by at least 60 days, according to two people familiar with the matter.

The administration had announced in February that it would scrap the U.S. company's license to operate in Venezuela, and gave it until early April to wrap up its business in the South American country.

Chevron CEO Mike Wirth and other top U.S. oil company executives met with Trump at the White House on Wednesday to discuss issues facing the industry.

The Wall Street Journal was first to report that the Trump administration was considering an extension to Chevron's license following the Wednesday meeting.

A White House official told Reuters it had no new announcement to share on Chevron and that the White House does not comment on the specifics of the president's private meetings.

A Chevron spokesperson also declined to comment on the specifics of the report but added in an emailed response to Reuters that company executives regularly hold meetings with government officials in Washington on issues related to its business in the United States and abroad.

One of the sources told Reuters the administration was considering extending Chevron's license by 60 days and possibly more, but reversing the broader U.S. decision to ultimately end Chevron's license to operate in Venezuela was not being discussed.

The other source told Reuters the administration was mulling an extension of at least 60 days, after which the U.S. could impose a system to further pressure Venezuela's oil industry.

That system could include sanctions on ships delivering Venezuelan crude to China or elsewhere, or involve tariffs on countries that purchase Venezuelan oil.

The sources asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

U.S. sanctions on Venezuela are intended to pressure President Nicolas Maduro, who has been in power for more than a decade amid elections that observers say were marred by fraud.

Washington has in recent years authorized some companies to maintain operations in Venezuela and export oil to certain markets, including the U.S., Europe and India, as exceptions to its sanction regime on the country's energy sector, first imposed in 2019.

Since he took office in January, Trump has said the United States does not need Venezuela's oil, which last year represented about 3.5% of all U.S. crude imports or some 220,000 barrels per day.

However, that flow has been a key means for Chevron to recover billions of dollars in pending debt in Venezuela.

Trump has accused Maduro of failing to make progress on electoral reforms and migrant returns.

Maduro and his government have always rejected sanctions by the United States and others, saying they are illegitimate measures that amount to an "economic war" designed to cripple Venezuela.

He and his allies have cheered what they say is the country's resilience despite the measures, though they have historically blamed some economic hardships and shortages on sanctions.

(Reporting by Timothy Gardner and Jarrett Renshaw in Washington and Seher Dareen and Rhea Rose Abraham in Bengaluru, additional reporting by Rishabh Jaiswal, Devika Nair and Anusha Shah; Editing by Pooja Desai, Savio D'Souza, Kirsten Donovan and Nia Williams)