CARACAS, July 25, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - President Nicolas Maduro said Thursday that the United States had authorized petroleum giant Chevron to resume oil production in Venezuela, restoring a license that was suspended in May.

"Chevron has been informed that it has been granted licenses allowing it to continue its operations in Venezuela," Maduro said in an interview with television network Telesur.

The news was not immediately confirmed by Washington. Chevron, in a statement sent to AFP, neither confirmed nor denied the announcement from Maduro.

"Chevron conducts its business globally in compliance with laws and regulations applicable to its business, as well as the sanctions frameworks provided for by the US government, including in Venezuela," Chevron spokesman Bill Turenne said.

US President Donald Trump announced in February he was revoking Chevron's license, after predecessor Joe Biden in 2022 restored the ability for US oil companies to produce in Venezuela following sanctions in Trump's first term.

The oil giant's license expired in May and it said it halted extraction operations in the South American country to comply with the renewed US sanctions.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Chevron would resume operations under a new agreement.

Caracas and Washington have had tense relations for years. In 2019, the United States contested Maduro's re-election, which was widely deemed as fraudulent by the international community.

Trump subsequently imposed economic sanctions and an oil embargo on Venezuela.

But channels of discussion remain open.

Venezuela last week released American prisoners under a deal which saw the repatriation of 252 Venezuelan migrants held in El Salvador after being deported from the United States.