Investing in Venezuela's Mining Sector in 2026: What U.S. Licenses Allow for Gold, Coal and Minerals
Today a U.S. company can buy and export gold, coal and minerals from Venezuela, sell equipment and services to its mines and negotiate investment contracts, but it cannot explore, mine or set up a joint venture in the country without a specific OFAC authorization. There are three general licenses, all dated September 2, 2026: 51D (trade in gold, coal and minerals), 54C (supply of goods and services) and 55A (investment contracts contingent on a later authorization). All of them exclude persons in Russia, Iran, North Korea and Cuba, and all three limit ties to China (more strictly 54C and 55A). Data as of November 2, 2026.
Venezuela mining and U.S. licenses at a glance
| What it allows | What it does not allow | |
|---|---|---|
| GL 51D | Buying, selling and exporting gold, coal and minerals | Exploring, mining, processing in the country |
| GL 54C | Supplying equipment, technology, software and services | Creating new joint ventures |
| GL 55A | Negotiating and signing contingent investment contracts | Performing them without another authorization |
Can a U.S. company invest in Venezuelan mining?
With caveats. The licenses allow three different things, and none of them alone authorizes putting money to work in a mine:
- Trading what is already produced (GL 51D).
- Selling mines their equipment and services (GL 54C).
- Negotiating and signing new investment contracts, with a clause that they only take effect if OFAC separately authorizes it (GL 55A).
To go from signing to carrying out a new project, a specific license from OFAC is needed, one that is not among the general ones.
What does License 51D allow (gold and minerals trade)?
It authorizes an “established U.S. entity” to export, reexport, sell, store, buy, deliver and transport Venezuelan-origin coal and minerals, including gold, even when the counterparty is the government, Carbozulia or Minerven. It covers prior due diligence (commercial, legal, technical, safety and environmental), shipping, insurance and ports, and the processing or refining of those minerals. It comes with the following:
- Reports: whoever buys or sells must report each transaction to the State and Interior Departments, 10 days after the first and every 30 days after, with chain-of-custody documentation for the mineral.
- Disputes outside Venezuela: in the U.S., the U.K., France or Singapore.
- Payments to blocked persons go to accounts the Treasury designates (Venezuela sanctions).
It does not authorize exploration, development, mining, extraction, processing or setting up joint ventures in Venezuela, nor processing gold in China, Russia, Iran, North Korea or Cuba, nor payment in kind, debt swaps or petros.
What does License 54C allow (equipment and services)?
It authorizes supplying, from the U.S. or by a U.S. person, goods, technology, software and services for the exploration, development, mining, extraction, processing, refining and production of coal and minerals, including gold. It includes maintenance and repair of equipment, payment processing and logistics. It does not authorize creating new joint ventures, or transactions with persons in Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba or China. Each transaction must be reported. An example of recent activity in the sector: 41 machines arrived at the Chocó Plant to produce more gold in El Callao (the report does not say who supplied them).
What does License 55A allow (investment contracts)?
It authorizes negotiating and signing contingent contracts for new investment in coal and minerals, including gold: new exploration, development, mining, extraction and processing, expanding existing operations and forming joint ventures. It includes prefatory steps such as due diligence. The condition is that performance of the contract be expressly contingent on separate OFAC authorization. “Contingent contracts” include executory contracts, agreements in principle, offers and bids in response to public tenders, and binding memoranda of understanding. License 55A replaced License 55, dated March 27, on September 2.
What requirements do they share?
- “Established U.S. entity”: organized in the U.S. on or before January 29, 2025 (51D).
- Exclusions: none of the three authorizes dealings with persons in Russia, Iran, North Korea or Cuba, or entities they own, control or partner with. On China, 54C and 55A exclude any person there; 51D excludes Venezuelan or U.S. entities controlled by or in a joint venture with persons in China, and processing the gold there.
- No blocked vessels and no unblocking of property.
- Other agencies: the licenses do not relieve anyone from other agencies’ requirements, such as the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security.
Who do you deal with inside Venezuela?
The licenses name Carbozulia (coal), Minerven (the state gold company) and entities in which Minerven owns 50% or more. Venezuela also has its own Single Mining Registry, whose system, SIGDME 2.0, published its user guide on October 17, 2026 (mining registry). The Venezuelan framework is in mining licenses and permits (Spanish).
What has the Venezuelan government said?
Delcy Rodríguez said on October 29, 2026 that there are important negotiations in mining, in gold, aluminum and iron, and that the state is valuing its non-essential assets to offer them to private owners, per Reuters. She gave no names or dates (the news).
Which minerals are there to invest in?
Gold, iron, bauxite, coltan and more (Venezuela’s minerals, Venezuelan gold, iron ore, bauxite, rare earths). The Orinoco Mining Arc is the best-known area, and the most disputed.
Steps for an investor, based on the licenses
This is not legal advice:
- Check that you are an “established U.S. entity” (organized before January 29, 2025) with no ties to China, Russia, Iran, North Korea or Cuba.
- Start with what is already authorized: trade (51D) or supply (54C).
- For a new project, sign a contingent contract (55A) with the performance clause subject to OFAC authorization, and apply for the specific license.
- Build traceability: 51D requires chain-of-custody documentation and a report every 30 days.
- Hire a sanctions lawyer before moving money: payments go to designated Treasury accounts.
What is not known
- Whether OFAC will grant specific licenses to carry out new mining projects, and on what terms.
- Which mining assets the state will offer to the private sector.
- How much gold is already being exported under these licenses: I found no figures.
- What will happen to the licenses, which are permits OFAC can change or revoke (51 is already on its fourth version).
- How investors will be protected against pending claims over old nationalizations.
The Venezuelan law behind the licenses: Venezuela’s mining law.