The Long Fall of Venezuelan Oil Ministers: Corruption and Intrigues

In Venezuela, five of the last eight Oil Ministers are imprisoned or on the run, accused of corruption. This strategic sector, vital to the country, is plagued by recurring scandals.

Share:

Gain full professional access to energynews.pro from 4.90$/month.
Designed for decision-makers, with no long-term commitment.

Over 30,000 articles published since 2021.
150 new market analyses every week to decode global energy trends.

Monthly Digital PRO PASS

Immediate Access
4.90$/month*

No commitment – cancel anytime, activation in 2 minutes.

*Special launch offer: 1st month at the indicated price, then 14.90 $/month, no long-term commitment.

Annual Digital PRO Pass

Full Annual Access
99$/year*

To access all of energynews.pro without any limits

*Introductory annual price for year one, automatically renewed at 149.00 $/year from the second year.

Venezuela’s Ministry of Oil has been at the center of a whirlwind of scandals and arrests for several years. Since Nicolas Maduro took power, five of the last eight occupants of this position have been involved in corruption cases. This sector, crucial to the nation’s economy, reveals a complex landscape of political allegiances, accusations of betrayal, and institutional failures. This succession of scandals further weakens a country already mired in a severe economic crisis.

Troubled Management Under Ramirez’s Leadership

Rafael Ramirez, a confidant of former President Hugo Chavez, was one of the most influential ministers in the oil sector. Under his leadership, Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) was reshaped to align with chavismo ideals. However, this rigid control over the sector also allowed persistent opacity to settle in, making it difficult for whistleblowers to speak out. After leaving the government, Ramirez was accused of orchestrating a corruption system that allegedly cost the country an estimated $45 billion. Now in exile in Italy, he remains beyond the reach of prosecution.

El Aissami: A Symbol of Sector-Wide Corruption

Tareck El Aissami, a close ally of Maduro and former vice president, was appointed in 2020 to “clean up” PDVSA after the Ramirez-era scandals. Yet, by 2023, he was himself arrested and imprisoned. He stands accused of embezzling funds through crypto-assets in an effort to circumvent U.S. economic sanctions. Photos of his arrest, handcuffed and surrounded by masked law enforcement, symbolize the extent of the scandal and illustrate the depth of corruption undermining the oil sector.

The Fall of Pedro Tellechea: Alleged Treason and Resignation

The most recent casualty is Pedro Tellechea, former PDVSA president and Oil Minister. In 2023, he took over the ministry, aiming to revitalize oil production. Months later, he too was arrested, accused of leaking strategic information to U.S. intelligence. Before his arrest, Tellechea had been lauded for increasing oil production from 400,000 to 900,000 barrels per day, amidst a post-electoral political crisis. The ministry claims his actions amount to treason amid persistent tensions between Caracas and Washington.

Internal Struggle Within the Ranks of Power

The successive arrests of these influential figures in the oil industry reflect internal divisions within the Venezuelan power structure. In an effort to maintain his legitimacy, Maduro continues to denounce “traitors” within his government. However, the persistence of scandals reveals a weakened system where corruption seems nearly impossible to eradicate. Oil-related issues go beyond mere management concerns, symbolizing a power struggle with both internal and international geopolitical implications.

A Strategic Sector Weakened by Corruption

With the arrests of its top officials, Venezuela’s oil sector, once the backbone of the economy, is now weakened. Endemic corruption, accusations of treason, and operational opacity destabilize a country already suffering from an unprecedented economic crisis. Observers question whether Venezuela will manage to recover from these scandals or if the oil institution will continue to collapse, taking the national economy down with it.

Russia plans to ship 2.1 million barrels per day from its western ports in September, revising exports upward amid lower domestic demand following drone attacks on key refineries.
QatarEnergy obtained a 35% stake in the Nzombo block, located in deep waters off Congo, under a production sharing contract signed with the Congolese government.
Phillips 66 acquires Cenovus Energy’s remaining 50% in WRB Refining, strengthening its US market position with two major sites totalling 495,000 barrels per day.
Nigeria’s two main oil unions have halted loadings at the Dangote refinery, contesting the rollout of a private logistics fleet that could reshape the sector’s balance.
Reconnaissance Energy Africa Ltd. enters Gabonese offshore with a strategic contract on the Ngulu block, expanding its portfolio with immediate production potential and long-term development opportunities.
BW Energy has finalised a $365mn financing for the conversion of the Maromba FPSO offshore Brazil and signed a short-term lease for a drilling rig with Minsheng Financial Leasing.
Vantage Drilling has finalised a major commercial agreement for the deployment of the Platinum Explorer, with a 260-day offshore mission starting in Q1 2026.
Permex Petroleum has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Chisos Ltd. for potential funding of up to $25mn to develop its oil assets in the Permian Basin.
OPEC+ begins a new phase of gradual production increases, starting to lift 1.65 million barrels/day of voluntary cuts after the early conclusion of a 2.2 million barrels/day phaseout.
Imperial Petroleum expanded its fleet to 19 vessels in the second quarter of 2025, while reporting a decline in revenue due to lower rates in the maritime oil market.
Eight OPEC+ members will meet to adjust their quotas as forecasts point to a global surplus of 3 million barrels per day by year-end.
A key station on the Stalnoy Kon pipeline, essential for transporting petroleum products between Belarus and Russia, was targeted in a drone strike carried out by Ukrainian forces in Bryansk Oblast.
The European Union’s new import standard forces the United Kingdom to make major adjustments to its oil and gas exports, impacting competitiveness and trade flows between the two markets.
The United Kingdom is set to replace the Energy Profits Levy with a new fiscal mechanism, caught between fairness and simplicity, as the British Continental Shelf continues to decline.
The Italian government is demanding assurances on fuel supply security before approving the sale of Italiana Petroli to Azerbaijan's state-owned energy group SOCAR, as negotiations continue.
The Dangote complex has halted its main gasoline unit for an estimated two to three months, disrupting its initial exports to the United States.
Rosneft Germany announces the resumption of oil deliveries to the PCK refinery, following repairs to the Druzhba pipeline hit by a drone strike in Russia that disrupted Kazakh supply.
CNOOC has launched production at the Wenchang 16-2 field in the South China Sea, supported by 15 development wells and targeting a plateau of 11,200 barrels of oil equivalent per day by 2027.
Viridien and TGS have started a new 3D multi-client seismic survey in Brazil’s Barreirinhas Basin, an offshore zone still unexplored but viewed as strategic for oil exploration.
Taiwan accuses China of illegally installing twelve oil structures in the South China Sea, fuelling tensions over disputed territorial sovereignty.

Log in to read this article

You'll also have access to a selection of our best content.