Caracas – October 13, 2026 -- North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP) is deploying eleven new 550-horsepower workover rigs in Venezuelan oil fields, the first new mobile repair-and-maintenance systems to operate there in more than 15 years.
Two new 1,500-horsepower drilling rigs arrived on October 7, and the company expects more equipment soon. Separately, NABEP has bought 60 rigs, 30 steam boilers and 70 pieces of heavy machinery. The company says this gives it the largest heavy-equipment fleet in the country.
NABEP targets production above 1 million barrels per day
The company's near-term goal is to lift output to more than 1 million barrels of oil per day. NABEP says it has already scaled production from roughly 18,000 barrels per day to more than 200,000 in two years. It attributes the increase to about $1 billion in company-funded investment.
NABEP is expanding operations in Lake Maracaibo and the Orinoco Belt.
August agreement with US departments underpins $100 billion investment plan
The equipment purchases follow an August 2026 agreement between NABEP and the U.S. Departments of State and War to significantly expand Venezuelan oil production. NABEP controls the rights to commercialize more than 65 billion barrels of P1 oil reserves in the country. It plans to invest nearly $100 billion to increase production capacity and upgrade oil-and-gas infrastructure.
CEO Alejandro Betancourt said every rig arriving in Venezuela brings the company closer to its production goals, and he described the U.S. government as the best possible partner for the task ahead.
Workforce stands at 5,000 employees and 10,000 contractors
NABEP employs 5,000 people in Venezuela and supports another 10,000 contract employees.