Venezuelan oil is a tantalizing prospect for Trump, who reveres fossil fuels and has already set out a vision of US oil companies investing billions to unleash this black gold. They have managed to decrease the emissions intensity in some of their global oil operations, said Rystad’s King. Venezuela’s oil production has slumped significantly since 2016, when it stood at around 2 million barrels a day. It’s a costly prospect in a world awash with oil, where prices are low and where peak global oil demand may be rapidly approaching. The global climate consequences of dramatically scaling up Venezuelan oil, if that does prove possible, are hard to predict.

Source: CNN January 08, 2026 02:03 UTC