Trump's Bid to Refill SPR Faces Long Delay Amid Venezuelan Oil Deal Hurdles

US President Donald Trump announced plans to refill the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) using Venezuelan crude, but experts warn that filling the reserve could take years. The SPR currently stands at around 290 million barrels, its lowest level since 1982. To address this shortage, Trump aims to use large-scale oil field development in Venezuela, where North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP), a company owned by local businessman Alejandro Betancourt, will hold development rights for 17 undeveloped oil fields for 100 years.

The agreement with Venezuela would secure 55% of the output for the US, which is estimated to be around 65 billion barrels. However, experts caution that it could take years for the new oil field development project to produce oil at a meaningful scale due to outdated and broken energy infrastructure in Venezuela.

Additionally, filling the reserve requires congressional approval, and there are concerns about the legal and diplomatic implications of this unprecedented agreement. Amos Hochstein, an energy adviser to former President Biden, expressed concern that Democrats could retake power in Washington or Venezuela's next government could challenge the deal.