US plans to refill emergency oil reserves with Venezuelan crude after securing majority stake in 65 billion barrels

The US is turning to an unlikely supplier to restock its depleted emergency oil stash. President Donald Trump announced on August 30, 2026, that Venezuelan crude will be used to replenish the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, calling the oil a “Gift from Venezuela to the People of the United States.” The SPR currently holds roughly 290 million barrels, about 44% of its total capacity. That is near a 44-year low. The deal behind the barrels Two days before Trump’s social media announcement, the administration revealed that US interests had secured 55% control over more than 65 billion barrels of proven Venezuelan reserves. That figure represents approximately one-fifth of Venezuela’s total proven reserves. The arrangement was structured as a private-sector partnership, which the administration says involved no direct costs to US taxpayers. Venezuela currently produces around 1.25 million barrels per day. More than half of that output, over 500,000 barrels per day, already flows to US refineries that are specifically equipped to handle the country’s characteristically heavy, sulfur-rich crude. Just seven months ago, in January 2026, the Department of Energy flatly denied that any Venezuel...