Venezuela gold: 41 machines arrive at the Chocó plant

Venezuela’s state mining company took delivery of 41 surface machines at its Chocó gold plant in El Callao, Bolívar state, on Wednesday, October 28, 2026. They are the first batch of 544 machines the government bought for its mines: surface, underground and drilling equipment, mobile units and marine equipment. Mining Minister Héctor Silva announced the delivery from the plant, on a live link with acting President Delcy Rodríguez, who was chairing a cabinet meeting at the Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas. “2027, more gold production,” Rodríguez said (in Spanish), according to Radio Miraflores and Diario 2001.

What is known

• How many machines: “Thanks to the Venezuela Renace Plan, we are receiving 41 surface units,” Silva said (in Spanish), according to Diario 2001 and Fedecámaras Radio. The full order is 544 units; Alba Ciudad and Diario 2001 also quote the phrase “more than 544.”
• Who bought them: the Corporación Venezolana de Minería (CVM). “We are receiving heavy machinery there, acquired by the Corporación Venezolana de Minería,” Rodríguez said (in Spanish), per Diario 2001 and Fedecámaras Radio. The CVM absorbed Minerven, the state gold company, by a decree published on March 6, 2026, according to El Nacional.
• When the rest arrives: the reports disagree. Diario 2001 and Fedecámaras Radio say more than 40% of the order is already at a Venezuelan port and the remaining 60% will arrive before the end of the year. Radio Miraflores instead says more than 40 additional units are at port and 60% of the order will be in service by year-end.
• What they are for: Silva said the machines will “significantly boost gold and coal production at the Chocó plant” (in Spanish), per El Universal and Globovisión. The plant’s deputy manager, Maricruz Martínez, said they will speed up drilling and hauling ore from the underground and open-pit mines to the stockpiles, and that the ore feeds the plant’s activated-carbon circuit used to recover the gold (Correo del Orinoco, Globovisión).
• The target: Rodríguez gave no number for 2027. The latest official figures are from January: according to the government, Venezuela produced 9.5 metric tons of gold in 2025, and Rodríguez said then she expected a 30% increase in 2026 (Banca y Negocios). Radio Miraflores and Diario 2001 report that the government will put the revenue into reserves, exports, wages, social programs and public health, and that Rodríguez said it is weighing international partnerships for the sector.
• At the same meeting, Rodríguez again demanded the Venezuelan central bank gold held in London: “Enough excuses (…) That gold belongs to Venezuelans, not to the Bank of England” (in Spanish), according to Alba Ciudad. Background in our story on Venezuela’s gold at the Bank of England.

What is not known

• Who made and sold the machines, and what they cost. None of the reports say.
• How the 544 units are split between the Chocó plant and the CVM’s other operations, and how many of each type.
• Which “coal” is meant. Silva spoke of “gold and coal” output, while Martínez referred to the activated carbon the plant uses to process gold (Spanish uses the same word, carbón, for both). The reports do not say whether the order also covers coal mining.
• How much gold the Chocó plant produces today. There is no public figure for the plant or for El Callao.
• How this relates to Heeney Capital. On September 16, U.S. firm Heeney Capital signed a concession with Venezuela and the CVM to develop and operate a gold project in the El Callao district, with “up to $1 billion in investment,” according to its release, which does not name the mine. Vene Economist places it at the Chocó mine and notes that the U.S. Treasury’s general licenses do not authorize mining itself: the concession would need a separate OFAC authorization. Heeney does not appear in the reports on the October 28 announcement.

Why it matters

The Chocó plant is a state facility in El Callao, the same mining district as Heeney’s concession. Most of the 2026 headlines about Venezuelan gold have been about deals with foreign companies. This time the Venezuelan state is buying its own equipment and promising more output in 2027, but with no figure, no price and a delivery schedule the reports do not agree on.

For U.S. readers, the link is trade: OFAC’s General License 51D authorizes exporting, buying, selling, transporting and refining Venezuelan-origin gold, according to Vene Economist. None of the reports on the Chocó machines say how much of any extra gold would be exported, or where to.

Where Venezuela’s gold is and who mines it: Venezuela gold: where it is, output and who mines it. If you are looking at gold as an investment yourself, our guide how to invest in gold explains the options and costs. All of the country’s minerals: Venezuela Minerals: List, Locations and the Most Valuable.