The interim government of Venezuela signed a multi-million dollar agreement to sell up to 1,000 kilograms of golden gold to the international commodity trading company Trafigura, in an operation aimed at supplying refineries in the United States and reflecting the strengthening of economic ties between the two countries after the capture of the dictator socialist Nicolás Maduro. The President of the United States, Donald Trump, was crucial to the success of the negotiations, who intervened masterfully
.The contract was signed by the Venezuelan state mining company Minerven, which pledged to supply between 650 and 1,000 kilograms of gold doré (a form of semi-processed gold) with a final purity content estimated at 98%. According to sources close to the deal, the metal will be transported by Trafigura to U.S. refineries under a separate arrangement with the U.S. government
.The agreement comes in a context of economic rapprochement between Caracas and Washington following recent decisive political changes in the South American country. U.S. officials have promoted initiatives to integrate Venezuelan natural resources into regulated international markets, with the objective of increasing transparency and reducing black market activity that for years dominated the commercialization of
Venezuelan gold.
According to market estimates, the current price of gold is around $166,000 per kilogram, meaning that the maximum shipment contemplated in the contract could exceed 160 million dollars. For Venezuela, these revenues represent a significant source of foreign exchange at a time when the country seeks to stabilize its economy and reactivate its productive sector
.The operation also had the support of other important U.S. authorities. The Secretary of the Interior of the United States, Doug Burgum, who visited Venezuela this week to discuss opportunities for cooperation in mining and energy, participated in the efforts that facilitated the
