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Petróleos de Venezuela, SA

Venezuelan company
Also known as: PDVSA
Written and fact-checked byThe Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
Table of Contents
Date:
January 1, 1976 - present
Headquarters:
Caracas
Areas Of Involvement:
petroleum
Earth exploration
petroleum industry
Recent News
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Petróleos de Venezuela, SA, state-owned Venezuelan company created through the nationalization of the petroleum industry on Jan. 1, 1976. It earns the largest share of Venezuela’s foreign exchange. Its headquarters are in Caracas.

By 1971 Venezuela had begun to take steps to curb the influence of the foreign concessionaires who, since their arrival after World War I, had been exploiting the country’s oil fields. The state barred the sale of additional concessions, nationalized concessions already sold but not yet exploited, and set a timetable for expropriation of ongoing operations. The government again allowed foreign investment in oil exploration and production in 1995.

Since the nationalization of the industry, Petróleos de Venezuela has been engaged in the exploration, refining, and marketing of oil, petrochemicals, and natural gas, including the export of petroleum and petroleum products.