GL 50A: The license with a name attached — 6 majors authorized to operate without restriction in Venezuela's oil sector

OFAC named six companies in an annex: Chevron, BP, Eni, Repsol, Shell, and Maurel & Prom. For these companies and their subsidiaries, GL 50A authorizes all transactions related to oil and gas operations in Venezuela. It is not a generic license — it is a named passport.

GL 50A is not just another license. It is a named license. OFAC identified six specific companies in an annex and granted them authorization to conduct "all transactions prohibited by the Venezuela Sanctions Regulations" related to oil and gas operations. For these six companies, the sanctions regime on Venezuela effectively does not exist in oil matters. It is broader than GL 46B (which only covers trading), broader than GL 48A (which covers goods and services but prohibits JVs), and broader than GL 49A (which only covers negotiation).

The selection of the six is not arbitrary. They are the Western companies that had operational presence in Venezuela before 2019: Chevron produces 250K bpd from Petroboscan and PetroIndependiente. Repsol operates Petroquiriquire and holds a stake in Carabobo 1. Eni extracts offshore gas at Cardon IV. Shell has assets in Urdaneta West. BP maintains legacy JVs. Maurel & Prom was added on February 18 — a mid-sized French company whose inclusion signals that OFAC is willing to add new names to the annex if they demonstrate prior presence.

The conditions replicate the standard framework: U.S. law governing contracts, disputes adjudicated in the U.S., payments via FGDF including royalties and oil taxes — a point that GL 50A expressly specifies. Reports are filed with the Department of State and the DOE: 10 days after the first transaction, then every 90 days, identifying parties, quantities, values, and dates.