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Venezuelan crude deal may boost U.S. supply but not pump prices
The U.S. is set to access Venezuelan fields with more than 65 billion barrels, but gasoline price impacts hinge on whether output can rise from about 1.25 million bpd to beyond 1.5 million bpd.
OilPrice reports that Venezuela’s heavy crude is well suited to the sophisticated refineries along the U.S. Gulf Coast, and the U.S. secured majority control over Venezuelan fields holding more than 65 billion barrels of oil. The outlet notes that while more Venezuelan barrels could help U.S. refiners, that linkage does not automatically translate into lower gasoline prices at the pump.
The outlet says Trump announced that the agreement is intended to increase U.S. supply and lower gasoline prices over time, and he later added that Washington plans to use the crude to refill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. OilPrice adds that the practical price effect depends on how much additional Venezuelan crude can be produced and where those barrels are ultimately sent.
OilPrice cites Rystad in saying that Venezuela is currently producing roughly 1.25 million bpd, with new projects targeting output above 1.5 million bpd. Getting meaningfully beyond that would require more drilling, workovers, improved infrastructure, reliable access to diluents, and significantly more drilling rigs.
OilPrice also points to existing refining demand, saying U.S. imports from Venezuela averaged 637,000 bpd over the four weeks through Aug. 21, rising to 662,000 bpd in the latest week. It further notes that Venezuela was the second-largest U.S. crude supplier behind Canada during that period.
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