Venezuela’s massive oil reserves may grab headlines, but they won’t reshape global markets anytime soon. Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies, shared this view during a fireside chat at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.
He explained that Venezuela’s heavy crude oil, aging infrastructure, and enormous capital needs make rapid output growth unrealistic. “Heavy crude requires a lot of CapEx,” he said. “To add one million barrels per day, you’d need $100 billion.”
Venezuela once pumped about 3 million barrels daily. Today, it produces less than 1 million. A partial recovery is possible—but not fast. “Yes, we can come back to three,” Pouyanné noted, “but it will take years.” He added he’s “not convinced it will have a direct impact on the market in 2026.”
Reserves alone don’t attract investment, he stressed. Clear regulations, security, and logistics matter far more. “It’s not only drilling,” he said. “You can’t transport heavy oil without dilution. It’s a complex system.”
TotalEnergies once operated in Venezuela but pulled out over safety concerns. The company would only return if authorities provide stable rules and emissions clarity. “The framework needs to be clear,” Pouyanné said. “I’ll tell you the truth—it’s not on my agenda.”
The conversation then turned to energy’s future. Pouyanné highlighted how AI and data centers are driving electricity demand faster than experts predicted. “The 21st century will be the century of electricity,” he said, “and AI is accelerating it.”
Data centers need constant, reliable power. Intermittent renewables alone can’t deliver that. So, TotalEnergies combines renewables with gas-fired plants—a mix Pouyanné calls “clean firm power.”
Gas remains essential, he argued. It burns cleaner than coal and stabilizes grids packed with wind and solar. Oil and gas companies already own dispatchable power assets, giving them an edge in supplying data centers. “We need more energy for AI,” he said.
Investor confidence in this approach appears to be growing. After TotalEnergies announced a $6 billion purchase of European gas plants, its shares jumped nearly 10%. Pouyanné called the market reaction validation of their strategy.
Africa faces different challenges. Although TotalEnergies operates across oil, gas, and renewables there, weak grids limit large-scale data center development. “The reliability of the grid is not there,” he noted. For now, Europe, the US, and Brazil offer better infrastructure and economics.
Renewables still play a central role. Pouyanné dismissed claims that investment is shifting away. In recent years, spending on solar, wind, batteries, and nuclear has actually surpassed traditional oil and gas outlays. “We are not moving out,” he said. “What should drive us is affordable electricity.”
Solar stands out for its speed. In Texas, developers can build solar plants in just 18 months—much faster than gas facilities. TotalEnergies invests $3–4 billion yearly in green energy and aims to quadruple its power generation capacity by 2040. “We went from zero to 50 terawatt hours,” Pouyanné said. “Continuing this path requires consistency.”
