GeoPark Enters Venezuela: the Bare Block Contract in the Orinoco Belt Is Now in Force
GeoPark, the oil company listed in New York (GPRK), announced on Monday, November 2, 2026 that the production participation contract (CPP) for the Bare Block, in the Orinoco Oil Belt, took effect ahead of schedule. The contract runs for 25 years and was signed with PDVSA Petróleo S.A. GeoPark will be the operator, will fund 100% of the approved capital spending and will hold a 65% net interest. It expects to take operational control before the end of 2026. It is another foreign oil company entering under the new hydrocarbons law. Data as of November 2, 2026.
What is known
- The contract: a 25-year CPP, the form the January reform allows private companies (the hydrocarbons law, in Spanish). It took effect ahead of the originally planned deadline, per La Patilla.
- The terms: GeoPark operates, pays 100% of approved capital and keeps a 65% net interest.
- The wells: GeoPark evaluated reactivating about 300 to 400 wells in a first redevelopment phase.
- The owner: after closing the purchase of the company that held the contract, Grupo Gilinski will control about 56.3% of GeoPark’s ordinary shares: it received 42,135,872 shares and could receive up to 5,421,589 more, which would take it to about 58.4%. It must launch within 90 days an offer for the shares it does not own, at $12.22 a share, for up to $100 million.
- Where: Bare is in the Orinoco Belt, where most of Venezuela’s oil lies (the Belt, oil reserves).
Why it matters
GeoPark joins Chevron, Eni, Repsol, Shell and NABEP, among others (oil companies in Venezuela), and PDVSA says it has signed 61 contracts and is negotiating 44 more (PDVSA explained). It comes as exports fell in October while production rose (the news).
What is not known
- How much Bare produces today and how much GeoPark will produce. La Patilla’s note gives no current output or target.
- How much it will invest. It speaks of funding 100% of approved capital, with no total amount.
- Which U.S. license it needs. GeoPark is listed in the U.S.; OFAC licenses to produce in Venezuela are specific (Venezuela sanctions), and the sources I read do not say which one it uses.
- Exactly when it will take over operations, beyond “before year-end 2026.”
- Which figures come from the company’s release and not from an independent second source: I could not open the release page, and the figures above agree across La Patilla and the summaries.