Some Canadians are ready to work in Venezuela‘s oilpatch — if they're allowed in

When news broke of U.S. forces attacking and seizing Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro earlier this month, Barry Blacklock’s phone began buzzing.

The Calgarian had lived in Venezuela for 17 years, becoming a permanent resident and working in the energy sector before leaving in 2009.

“That night I was getting emails from friends in Canada and since then, 50, 60 different WhatsApp messages, emails, phone calls from people,” he said, during a video call interview from Mexico.

He's now helping co-ordinate a contingent of companies looking to invest and bring equipment to Venezuela, where there could be a huge wave of demand for their services in the years ahead. He had organized a similar group back in 2019, when it appeared there might be a regime change, though that never materialized.

"Obviously, a change is coming. We're just not sure what it is yet,” said Blacklock, an entrepreneur with over 40 years of experience in the international oil and gas sector.

Alberta has numerous oil workers and companies with experience all over the world. The recent intervention in Venezuela, along with U.S. President Donald Trump's stated plan to rejuvenate the country's oil industry, is creating cautious excitement among some in Alberta's energy sector. But a plethora of challenges remain, including an unstable government and uncertainty about the level of U.S. involvement.

Venezuela has the world's largest proven crude reserves, at an estimated 303 billion barrels. But its oil industry has been starved of new investment, equipment and technology for two decades, due to government corruption, hostility and state control.

"A lot of the oilfields have been neglected. They're not producing," Blacklock said. "The equipment, the wellheads, the pumps — a lot of the equipment on the surface has been stolen or just allowed to deteriorate so it has no value. It will all have to be replaced."

For foreign companies, there's potential for profit. That's especially true for those in Alberta, many of which work with heavy oil similar to the crude found in Venezuela.

“In Canada, we have a great capability and potential to offer Venezuela in bringing all of those technologies," said Amit Mankekar, who operates consulting companies in Canada and Colombia, "which have advanced significantly over the last few decades that Venezuela has missed."

Adam Waterous, executive chair of Strathcona Resources, told Reuters this week he would quickly assemble a technical team from his company, Canada's fifth-largest oil producer, to go to Venezuela if asked.

Any level of excitement comes with a healthy dose of hesitancy about all the challenges of working in Venezuela.

"What are the taxes going to be? What are the royalties going to be? Is that going to be fair and comparable to other jurisdictions in the world?" said Blacklock.

"Are Canadians going to be safe if they go there to work?"