- US to use Venezuelan oil to replenish Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR)
- Trump blames Biden for depleting SPR, calls refill a gift from Venezuela
- US gains 55% stake in Venezuela oil joint venture with long-term concession
US President Donald Trump has said oil from Venezuela will be used to replenish the country's Strategic Petroleum Reserve, as Washington looks to rebuild emergency crude stockpiles that were heavily drawn down in recent years.
"One of the things I am going to do with the Venezuelan Oil is fill up the Strategic National Reserves," Trump said in a post on Truth Social, blaming former President Joe Biden for leaving the reserves "virtually emptied".
He added that the "topping out" process would begin shortly, describing the move as a "Gift from Venezuela to the People of the United States".
The comments came after Trump announced last Friday an agreement under which the US would take a 55% stake in a joint venture linked to Venezuela's estimated 65 billion barrels of proven oil reserves through a long-term concession.
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A US official said the arrangement involves an experienced private operator in Venezuela. As production increases, oil supplied at cost could be directed towards replenishing the SPR and meeting US military requirements.
Venezuela's interim President Delcy Rodriguez, however, said the energy arrangement would run for 25 years and is aimed at increasing the country's crude production to around 1.5 million barrels per day.
The SPR, the world's largest emergency crude oil stockpile, was depleted significantly in recent years as the US government released oil to counter supply disruptions and elevated energy prices.
The Trump administration has since begun efforts to rebuild inventories.
The use of Venezuelan crude could potentially accelerate the refill while limiting direct costs to US taxpayers. However, the timing and scale of deliveries remain unclear, and it is too early to determine whether the arrangement will have any meaningful impact on US petrol prices.
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