Energy tops India-Venezuela agenda as Modi meets Delcy

Prime Minister Narendra Modi shakes hands with Acting President of Venezuela Delcy Eloína Rodríguez Gómez during her visits to Indiex at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on Thursday, June 4, 2026. Photo credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar

India’s partnership with Venezuela is of “immense importance” to the global South, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday (June 4, 2026) as he welcomed Delcy Rodriguez, Venezuela’s acting president, even as the South American country called “energy security a fundamental pillar of the bilateral relationship”.

Venezuela is still dealing with the uncertain aftermath of the January kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro by the US military. Officials said Ms. Rodriguez, whose country is going through a “political transformation” and a “fundamental economic transformation,” called India a “trusted partner.” The leader who arrived here on Wednesday is on a five-day visit.

After meeting PM Modi, Ms Rodriguez met Union Petroleum and Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, who announced that an Indian “technical team” would visit Venezuela “soon” to explore other potential energy partnerships.

“We had extensive discussions on expanding our cooperation in energy, critical minerals, technology, agriculture, health and people-to-people relations. As a valued partner in Latin America, our close cooperation with Venezuela is of immense importance to the Global South. We will continue to work together for the mutual benefit of the people of our nations,” Mr. Modi said after the meeting.

A Venezuelan government press release said the meeting aimed to “strengthen the role of both nations in the geopolitical context of the Global South and strengthen mutually beneficial macroeconomic agreements.” She described India as “one of the nation’s top energy export destinations, making energy security a fundamental pillar of the bilateral relationship”.

Ms Rodriguez, who was accompanied by the ministers of the economy, foreign affairs, science and technology, transport and communications, conducted a “comprehensive review of the map of mutual cooperation”, the press release said, adding that bilateral relations were in “excellent condition”.

Officials said Ms. Rodriguez discussed the political situation in Venezuela in a “candid conversation” with Mr. Modi during the official-level meeting and during a working lunch that followed. “We all know that there has been a transition in Venezuela and we are working with a government that is friendly and wants a partnership with India. We want to reciprocate,” said Rudrendra Tandon, secretary (east) of the Ministry of External Affairs while briefing the media.

“Venezuela has traditionally been a very close friend. We have made many partnerships bilaterally and we have worked very closely internationally,” Mr. Tandon said, explaining that the spectrum of relations between the two sides includes political, multilateral and energy partnerships.

After delegation-level talks at Hyderabad House, Ms. Rodriguez met Mr. Puri, who said in a post on X that Venezuela had become “among the largest oil suppliers to India in April and May 2026.”

“Our technical team will soon visit Venezuela to further explore this potential. Indian companies already have existing investments in Venezuela and are now looking forward to building on them, besides seeking new opportunities for fruitful cooperation…” Mr. Puri said, presenting the Indian government’s forward-looking energy policy that seeks to secure alternative energy sources as the Indian economy deals with turbulence in the US-Iranian global energy market. strangler in the Strait of Hormuz.

“Venezuela has some of the largest oil reserves in the world. The Indian economy is a large and growing consumer of oil and will have a steady growth in demand in the coming years. So we see a perfect complementarity in the energy sector,” Mr Tandon said, informing that the Hyderabad House discussions were aimed at creating an “energy partnership”.

He said there was no energy deal between the governments during the meeting and that the talks were focused on building an “energy relationship”. He said Ms. Rodriguez was expected to meet with private sector oil companies during her visit, but declined to elaborate because they fell within the realm of visiting guests’ private interactions.

Mr. Tandon mentioned that Ms. Rodriguez will travel to Gujarat and provide insight into the energy business as part of her visit. The visiting Venezuelan leader, who is a devotee of the late spiritual leader Satya Sai Baba, is also expected to visit the Satya Sai Baba Ashram.

Published – 04 Jun 2026 16:49 IST