Trump Confirms Plan To Refill Strategic Petroleum Reserve With Venezuelan Oil

President Donald Trump confirmed Sunday that oil from a deal announced two days earlier with Venezuela will be used to replenish the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

“One of the things I am going to do with the Venezuelan Oil is fill up the Strategic National Reserves which, because of Sleepy Joe Biden, has been virtually emptied. The ‘topping out’ process will begin very shortly, and is a Gift from Venezuela to the People of the United States,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

The post followed Friday’s announcement that the United States had entered an agreement giving U.S. interests majority control of more than 65 billion barrels of proven Venezuelan oil reserves through a partnership with private business.

The United States would hold a majority share of the venture’s output — about 55 percent — through a mix of ownership and the right to buy the oil at cost. Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodríguez said the 25-year deal could bring more than $100 billion in investment and more than $209 billion in tax revenue to Venezuela, with a production target of more than 1.5 million barrels per day.

A U.S. official said that as production grows, some of the at-cost oil would go toward filling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and meeting U.S. military needs.

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🚨Just in: President Trump says he will use Venezuelan oil to refill the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve pic.twitter.com/87pduUxkLq

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The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is the United States’ emergency stockpile of crude oil. It is stored in underground salt caverns at four sites in Texas and Louisiana. Created in 1975 following the 1973-74 oil embargo, it is intended to provide a buffer against major disruptions in oil supply.

Authorized capacity is approximately 714 million barrels. As of the week ending August 21, 2026, the reserve held 289.7 million barrels, or about 40.6 percent of capacity, its lowest level since the early 1980s

The reserve was drawn down under both the Biden and Trump Administrations. In 2022 the Biden Administration released 180 million barrels in response to supply disruptions from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Those stocks were not fully restored before the ongoing conflict with Iran further strained supplies.

This past March, the Trump administration authorized the release of 172 million barrels as part of a coordinated International Energy Agency action totaling 400 million barrels after the conflict with Iran restricted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Additional drawdowns have been authorized since.

It remains unclear how quickly oil from the Venezuela agreement can reach the reserve. Venezuela currently produces about 1.25 million barrels per day, and raising output towards the stated target will require substantial investment and repairs to infrastructure that has deteriorated over years of underinvestment.

Officials have said the “topping out” process will begin shortly, but wells must be drilled, equipment restored, and export facilities upgraded before large additional volumes become available. Filling the remaining capacity of roughly 424 million barrels would likely take years even under an accelerated production schedule.

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