Sources say that the U.S. will soon issue a general license lifting sanctions against Venezuelan oil industry.

Three sources familiar with preparations said that U.S. officials were working on a general license to be issued soon, which would lift some sanctions against Venezuela's energy industry. This is a change from the previous plan of granting individual exemptions to sanctions to companies that wanted to do business there.

U.S. officials said that following the capture by the U.S. of Venezuelan president?Nicolas Maduro in the first week of this month, Washington would ease the sanctions imposed on Venezuela's Energy Industry to facilitate a $2 billion oil supply deal between Caracas & Washington as well as an ambitious $100 billion reconstruction program for the country's Oil industry.

In recent weeks, many partners and customers, including U.S. giant Chevron, have applied for individual licences to increase oil production and exports from the OPEC-member.

Sources said that the volume of requests to the U.S. Government has slowed down progress in plans to increase exports and get investment flowing into the country.

Requests for comment from the U.S. Treasury Department or?White House were not immediately responded to.

(source: Reuters)