What Is Behind the US Deal to Take Control of Venezuela’s Oil Reserves?

President Donald Trump has called the agreement between Washington and Caracas “THE BIGGEST OIL DEAL IN WORLD HISTORY.” The deal would give the United States majority control over more than 65 billion barrels of Venezuela’s proven oil reserves, after Trump pledged to “take back” the country’s energy resources.

The terms remain largely unknown. The agreement reportedly covers 17 strategic oil fields, and the U.S. government says it will partner with a private company to extract the fuel. Trump said the arrangement would more than double American oil reserves.

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THE BIGGEST OIL DEAL IN WORLD HISTORY!

The 65-billion-barrel figure represents roughly one-fifth of Venezuela’s proven reserves. U.S. government estimates put Venezuela’s total reserves at 303 billion barrels in 2023, the world’s largest known deposit, with about 17 percent of global oil supplies estimated to be there.

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The 65 billion barrel number is a red herring and will have little relevance to any actual deals, the real relevant details of which are still almost entirely unknown.

Some analysts have challenged the number because the deal has no published fixed terms. Oil market researcher Rory Johnston said the figure was a “red herring” with little relevance to any actual agreements, whose important details remain almost entirely unknown. He said it was the kind of large number Trump would emphasize and repeat.

The agreement comes as U.S. proven reserves have declined to about 46 billion barrels by the end of 2024. The country’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve, designed to support domestic supplies during emergencies, holds 289.7 million barrels in facilities with capacity for 714 million. Trump has said the Venezuelan deal will help rebuild reserves that have fallen to their lowest levels since 1982.

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It’s just a classic big number that Trump was sure to jump all over and will repeat ad nauseam going forward.