NABEP has expanded its drilling rig fleet in Venezuela to 41 units, supporting increased operational activity across the country's oil and gas sector. The company also reported production exceeding 223,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day

Fleet Reaches 41 of 60 Announced Rigs

North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP) said its in-country rig fleet will reach 41 of the 60 rigs it announced earlier this month when November begins. The company disclosed the update in a statement dated October 31, 2026, from Caracas, Venezuela.

The update is NABEP's second fleet announcement following the October addition of 11 workover rigs rated at 550 horsepower and two drilling rigs rated at 1,500 horsepower. The company said the equipment buildout is proceeding as its production continues to climb.

Drilling Rigs Target Heavy Oil Reserves

NABEP has nine drilling rigs in Venezuela that bore new wells. Three are active in the Junín 10 block of the Orinoco Belt, three more will start work there soon, and three are being refurbished or moved into position. Four additional drilling rigs are being shipped from Houston, Brazil, and Colombia.

According to the company, these rigs will open new production from NABEP's heavy oil reserves. The fleet includes H&P and NOV models from U.S. manufacturers.

Workover Rigs Aim to Restore Idle Wells

NABEP also operates 20 workover rigs in Venezuela, which repair existing wells and return idle or underperforming wells to production. Three of those rigs are in Lake Maracaibo, 12 are in the Lagunillas and Bachaquero fields, and five are in the Orinoco Belt.

A further 15 workover rigs are being refurbished in Houston for deployment in western Venezuela. The company said all 35 workover rigs are being recertified to Category 4, which it described as the most thorough level of rig inspection, before they enter service.

Production Climbs Past 223,000 Barrels a Day

NABEP reported that its production reached 223,509 barrels of oil equivalent per day, up from about 200,000. The company said it has scaled production from approximately 18,000 barrels per day to more than 200,000 over two years, funded by roughly USD 1 billion in company-financed investment.

The same strategy is funding the current push, according to NABEP, with hundreds of millions of dollars more being reinvested every month.

Reinvestment Strategy Funds the Buildout

NABEP CEO Alejandro Betancourt said the company is paying for the rigs with the oil it produces. "We are paying for every one of these rigs with the oil we produce. It's the same reinvestment strategy we used to successfully grow production tenfold in two years," Betancourt said.

Betancourt added that NABEP is committed to injecting unprecedented capital into Venezuela's long-neglected oil industry and, in doing so, breathing new life into the Venezuelan economy.

"We're concurrently planning and investing in shovel-ready brown fields to the most challenging green fields, and no company is better suited for the job at hand than one born right here at home, powered by Venezuelan workers," he said.

Workforce, Reserves, and Investment Plans

NABEP employs 5,000 people and supports 10,000 contract employees in Venezuela. The company said it controls the rights to commercialize more than 65 billion barrels of P1 oil reserves in the country and plans to invest nearly USD 100 billion to increase production capacity and improve oil-and-gas infrastructure.

NABEP said it is rapidly expanding operations in Lake Maracaibo and the Orinoco Belt. Its near-term goal is to raise production to more than 1 million barrels of oil per day.

Company Background

NABEP describes itself as an independent oil exploration and production company operating in North and Latin America. Its headquarters are in Bridgetown, Barbados, with offices in Caracas, Maracaibo, and Lechería in Venezuela.

The company states that it is committed to the responsible development of energy resources, the safety of its people, and the prosperity of the communities where it operates.

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