Trump’s Venezuela Oil Venture Aims for 150% Output Hike by 2028

North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP), a company backed by the Trump administration, plans to increase Venezuelan crude oil output to 500,000 barrels per day by the end of 2028, a 150% hike from the current 200,000 barrels per day. The company has been granted a 100-year concession on 17 fields with an estimated 65 billion barrels of proved reserves. NABEP’s growth has been financed by internal cash flow, but outside investment tied to its US partnership is expected to accelerate growth. The deal is part of the Trump administration’s efforts to increase oil production and reduce fuel prices, which have soared in the wake of the Iran conflict. NABEP has expanded production more than tenfold over the past two years and is now Venezuela’s second-largest private oil producer behind Chevron Corp. The company’s CEO, Alejandro Betancourt, has high-level relationships in Caracas, Moscow, and Washington, and has pioneered a flexible contract structure that has become a model for new deals offered by the government.