Who is Alejandro Betancourt, ex-Chavez ally now Trump’s Venezuela oil man?
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x whatsapp-stroke copylink google Add Al Jazeera on Google info Abandoned pumpjacks damaged over time at a field of state oil company PDVSA in Cabimas, Venezuela [File: Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/Reuters] By Priyanka Shankar Published On 1 Sep 2026 1 Sep 2026 Controversial Venezuelan businessman Alejandro Betancourt, who amassed massive fortunes under former socialist President Hugo Chavez and who has faced investigations into alleged money laundering, has been tapped by the Trump administration to lead a new US-backed oil venture in the Latin American nation.
On Friday, President Donald Trump announced that the US has reached a deal with Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez under which Washington will acquire majority control over more than 65 billion barrels’ worth of proven oil reserves.
As part of the deal, the US government plans to take a 35 percent passive stake in Betancourt’s North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP) – Venezuela’s second-largest oil firm.
In a statement, Betancourt said Venezuela is “blessed with an abundance of natural resources, hardworking people and untapped potential”, adding that the deal will “unleash that potential to the great benefit of both Venezuelans and Americans”.
So who is Betancourt, 46, and why is Trump relying on him to tap into Venezuela’s oil sector?
Betancourt made fortunes after his firm, Derwick Associates, won contracts to build power plants under the government of President Chavez following an acute power crisis triggered by drought in the late 2000s.
Critics say the firm won those contracts often without bidding, earning billions of dollars. Betancourt and other firms, which received lucrative contracts during the Chavez era, are often called “bolichicos,” meaning the “Bolivarian boys”.
His net worth is believed to be $2.6bn, according to media reports.
But in 2017, anticorruption watchdog Transparencia Venezuela accused the company of inflating prices during the drought period.
In 2021, another report by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) said Betancourt was involved in corruption and money laundering networks linked to the Venezuelan state.
Over the past decade, he has faced money laundering investigations in the US, Spain and Switzerland. In 2025, the Venezuelan tycoon was arrested twice in the UK following extradition requests from Switzerland and Spain over alleged money laundering cases.
Betancourt, who has the experience of running oil fields in Venezuela, became a person of interest for the Trump administration, which has been looking to exploit the country’s vast oil resources.
This year, the US administration intervened in the Swiss investigations into Betancourt and urged ked the UK government to lift travel curbs on him, according to US media reports.
The Venezuelan businessman has denied the accusations and has faced no formal criminal charges or convictions.
Betancourt also leads the O’Hara administration, an international Spain-based investment group, where he serves as the president and one of the main shareholders of Hawkers, an e-commerce company that sells sunglasses.
Born into a wealthy family in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, Betancourt initially worked in the energy sector after completing a Master’s in Business Administration course from Oxford University in the United Kingdom.
In April 2024, he cofounded NABEP, and a year later, took full control of the company, which has its headquarters in Bridgetown, Barbados.
Trump’s control of Venezuelan oil comes amid upheaval in the global energy market due to the war on Iran, which has affected US energy security. Its reserves are at a record low. Earlier this week, Trump said that he will use the Venezuelan oil to fill the US oil reserves.
The joint venture with the NABEP, which produces about 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, will help expand production, as Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has spiked global oil prices, including in the US. The high energy prices will likely cost Trump politically in the November Midterm elections.
On Monday, the White House released a fact sheet, which says that the US is creating a private joint venture with North American Blue Energy Partners – which the Trump administration aims to use to gain a larger stake in Venezuela’s oil reserves.
Back in January, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had accused the socialist government led by President Nicolas Maduro of creating a hub for China and Russia.
“This is our Hemisphere – and President Trump will not allow our security to be threatened,” Rubio said after the military operation in Caracas.
Venezuela holds approximately 17 percent of the world’s total oil reserves, but due to the US sanctions and mismanagement, it remains underdeveloped. The country currently produces about one million barrels of oil a day, which is just about 1 percent of global production.
Venezuela’s interim leader has welcomed the oil deal, which is expected to add the much-needed funds to the state’s treasury.
The association with the US will make it easy for NABEP to operate the Venezuelan economy, which still remains under US sanctions.
In a statement to the Reuters news agency, NABEP said, “Mr Betancourt has been in the Venezuelan oil industry for more than 15 years with a consistent track record of success, most recently at the helm…
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