From Venezuela to Texas to Jamnagar: Marco Rubio’s dash for energy

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who landed in Mumbai on Tuesday and met External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, will next visit Reliance Industries’ Jamnagar refinery. Rubio wants India’s biggest private refiner to process more Venezuelan crude, with the possibility of Reliance returning as an oil producer in Venezuela also on the table.

The visit comes months after Donald Trump announced a proposed Texas refinery backed by Reliance, presenting it as a $300 billion investment. The two developments offer a glimpse of Washington’s effort to reshape oil flows while bringing Indian capital and refining capacity closer to American energy priorities.

Reliance can handle the heavy crude


Rubio said on October 20 that the US would encourage Reliance to refine more Venezuelan crude at its Indian facilities. He also raised the possibility of the company producing oil in Venezuela. Washington is seeking both a larger market for Venezuelan oil and potentially fresh investment in its production.

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Reliance can be a natural partner. Its Jamnagar complex has a combined capacity of around 1.4 million barrels per day and is configured to process a wide range of crude grades, including heavy, high-sulphur oil. Venezuelan crude is particularly difficult to handle because of its density and high sulphur content. Jamnagar’s scale and processing flexibility make it commercially attractive for such supplies. That's why Rubio called India a “refining superpower”.

American refineries are not universally incapable of processing Venezuelan crude. Several Gulf Coast facilities were historically designed to handle heavy oil. But Reliance offers a large alternative market, with the ability to turn difficult crude into exportable fuels. That's important for Washington as it seeks to expand Venezuela’s oil production following the removal of former president Nicolás Maduro.

Reliance has already resumed direct purchases of Venezuelan oil under US-approved arrangements. The immediate objective is therefore to expand an existing commercial channel rather than create one from scratch.

The larger possibility is upstream investment. If Reliance agrees to participate in Venezuelan production, it could provide capital and a dependable buyer for additional output. But no new production agreement has been confirmed. The commercial terms, legal protections and sanctions framework would determine whether such a move makes sense.

Also Read | India has made substantial progress in diversifying oil imports, Rubio says

Diversification without a clean break

The Venezuela initiative can also be seen in context of India’s purchases of Russian crude. Reliance has been a significant buyer of discounted Russian oil since Western sanctions disrupted established trading patterns after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Washington has sought to reduce those purchases, using tariff threats and sanctions pressure.

But the Trump administration recently waived potential additional tariffs on major buyers of Russian oil, including India. The move may have removed an obstacle to a US-India trade agreement, even as it drew criticism from American lawmakers who viewed the concession as too generous to Moscow. The two governments are said to be close to finalising a trade deal.

More Venezuelan oil could give Reliance another source of heavy crude and reduce its dependence on Russian supplies at the margin. But there is no evidence that India has agreed to replace Russian oil with Venezuelan barrels as part of a formal bargain. The economics will decide how far the shift goes. Venezuelan crude must compete with Russian grades on delivered price, freight costs and refining margins. It is not enough for Washington to declare one source politically preferable.

The American strategy might be to widen the alternatives available to Indian refiners while encouraging purchases that fit its geopolitical priorities. India, meanwhile, has an interest in keeping its options open.

The Texas refinery

The proposed Texas refinery could be the other major piece of the story. Trump announced the project in March, presenting it as a landmark investment backed by Reliance. The planned facility near Brownsville is intended to process American shale oil and supply petroleum products to the market.

The larger $300 billion number appears to include projected commercial activity and oil purchases rather than capital that Reliance itself will put into the project. Reliance is not committing that amount to build a refinery in Texas. Its involvement is better viewed as a commercial foothold in a politically important American energy project, with the prospect of buying its output under a long-term arrangement.

The project also has a different technical rationale from Jamnagar. Texas is intended to process light American shale crude, while Jamnagar can handle a much broader range of feedstocks. The two facilities can give Reliance exposure to different parts of the oil business, from processing crude in India to participating in the American market.

For Trump, the project offers a domestic investment announcement. For Reliance, it offers a way to deepen its US presence.

Rubio’s Jamnagar visit also comes with a domestic political backdrop. In March, Trump announced the proposed Texas refinery as petrol prices rose and the midterms approached. Rubio could be seeking a commitment from Reliance that would allow Trump to showcase investment and potential jobs ahead of the elections.

The bigger play

After meeting External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar in Mumbai, Rubio is due to travel to Jamnagar, where he is likely to meet Reliance Chairman Mukesh Ambani. A visit to a private refinery by a senior American diplomat is a noteworthy event. It suggests that Washington sees Reliance as a potential partner in implementing its energy priorities, not merely as a company buying oil on the international market.

The proposed Texas project and the Venezuelan discussions point in the same direction. Washington wants more investment in American energy infrastructure while encouraging a major Indian refiner to absorb additional crude from the Western Hemisphere. Reliance has the capacity to make that relationship commercially meaningful.

Still, the two initiatives should not be treated as parts of a confirmed package. No public evidence establishes that Reliance’s Texas investment is conditional on buying Venezuelan oil, or that either arrangement is a formal requirement of the US-India trade deal.

The immediate test will be whether the Jamnagar visit produces concrete commitments of larger Venezuelan crude purchases, a production agreement or a clearer commercial arrangement around Texas. Without those, the visit will still be a significant signal rather than a settled energy bargain.