Continental Resources to develop massive oil patch in Venezuela

JUST IN: Continental Resources signs a memorandum of understanding with Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA to develop a 126,000-acre patch of the Orinoco Belt holding an estimated 30 billion barrels, after Trump urged US firms to invest in the country.

Thirty billion barrels. That's what Continental Resources just signed up to develop in Venezuela.

The Oklahoma City firm inked a memorandum of understanding with PDVSA, the state oil company, for 126,000 acres of the Orinoco Belt. That belt holds most of Venezuela's 303 billion barrels, the biggest reserves on the planet, and Continental wants to turn this paper deal into a long-term agreement within weeks.

The timing isn't subtle. Eight months after Maduro was removed in a US raid, Trump told American oil companies to get in there. The publicly traded majors mostly said thanks, we'll watch. Continental is private, and its founder Harold Hamm happens to be a longtime Trump donor. Funny how that works.

He's not alone though. Chevron is putting seven billion in to double its Venezuelan output by 2031, and Washington already claims majority control over 65 billion barrels there. The world's largest oil reserves are being carved up right now, and American names are holding the knife.

This is Dave King, reporting for HIT.