Venezuela Advances Mining Reform Bill Pledging to Move at "Trump Speed"

Venezuela's National Assembly gave preliminary approval to a sweeping mining reform bill that would open the country's gold, diamond and rare-earth sectors to foreign and domestic private companies, with the acting government pledging to pursue the overhaul at "Trump speed" following a high-profile visit by U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.

A majority of lawmakers voted in favor of the proposal, which would repeal a 1999 mining regulatory law that has governed the sector for nearly three decades. The legislation requires a second debate and vote before it can become law, but final passage is widely expected given the ruling socialist party's control of the legislature. A small group of moderate opposition deputies abstained, saying they had received the draft legislation only minutes before the session began.

The draft law, reviewed by Reuters, contains significant concessions to attract foreign capital. Concession terms would extend from 20 years to 30 years. Mineral deposits would remain state property, but disputes would be resolved through international arbitration rather than Venezuelan courts. The bill also creates new tax calculations for mining projects and explicitly allows foreign and domestic companies to exploit gold, diamonds and rare earths. Officials say the overhaul targets capital investment across gold, bauxite and other strategic minerals.

The pace of the reform was striking in itself. The proposal was submitted, discussed and received initial approval in less than two weeks, a timeline that reflects both the urgency of Venezuela's economic situation and its new posture toward foreign investors.

Burgum sounded an optimistic note about the legislation during his visit to Caracas, saying it would create opportunities for companies and that Acting President Delcy Rodriguez had committed to ensuring their security. The day after Burgum concluded his visit, the U.S. issued a license authorizing certain transactions involving Venezuelan-origin gold, permitting dealings with state-owned mining company Minerven and its subsidiaries, provided contracts are governed by U.S. law.

Rodriguez has explicitly modeled the mining reform on recent changes to Venezuela's oil sector, which lowered taxes, expanded the oil ministry's authority and granted autonomy to private producers. "We're talking about the future. We are talking about the country that we are going to give to our children," Rodriguez said of the broader reform agenda.

The reforms arrive at a pivotal moment. The Trump administration has supported a series of moves by Rodriguez's acting government to attract investors and stabilize Venezuela's economy following years of U.S. sanctions. A $100 billion reconstruction plan for the oil and gas industry, proposed by President Donald Trump, has added further momentum to Venezuelan reform efforts that are increasingly calibrated to Washington's priorities.

The shift carries historical weight for foreign investors. Some companies that might now consider returning to Venezuela lost investments when the ruling party enacted the existing mining framework decades ago in a wave of nationalizations that favored the state-run oil company, PDVSA. The inclusion of international arbitration in the new draft is a direct response to that legacy, designed to reassure foreign firms that contract disputes will not be settled on Venezuelan terms alone.

With the legislature's second vote likely to deliver final passage, the mining bill represents the most concrete signal yet that Venezuela's economic opening, long promised and long delayed, is moving with genuine institutional backing.