Top Economist Slams Trump's Venezuela Oil Deal as 'Theft': 'Overthrew Their Leader, Forced Him to Sign Billions'

Economist Justin Wolfers criticized President Donald Trump's Venezuela oil deal, characterizing it as "theft" rather than imperialism or socialism.

Wolfers expressed his displeasure on X on Monday regarding Venezuela's regime change and the subsequent oil agreement. He noted that the oil belongs to the Venezuelan people, and these rights were conceded after former President Nicolás Maduro was removed from power and Delcy Rodríguez was installed as interim president, who has not yet faced an election.

"They overthrew their leader, installed someone unelected, and had him sign away billions of dollars in oil rights. Call it what it is. This is not imperialism. This is not socialism. This is theft," Wolfers said.

They overthrew their leader, installed someone unelected, and had him sign away billions of dollars in oil rights. Call it what it is. This is not imperialism. This is not socialism. This is theft. The oil belongs to the Venezuelan people who never consented.

— Justin Wolfers, September 7, 2026

The Deal Under Scrutiny

Last month, Venezuela granted North American Blue Energy Partners 100-year extraction rights to 17 oil fields with proven reserves of approximately 65 billion barrels. This is part of what the White House calls a "historic oil deal" to secure U.S. energy dominance.

NABEP, Venezuela's second-largest private oil producer, has transferred 35% of its parent company's equity to the Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capital without compensation. The State Department has separately obtained the right to purchase 20% of all future production at production cost, as well as first-refusal rights on the remaining 80% of output.

According to the White House, NABEP plans to invest up to $100 billion in building new oil infrastructure in Venezuela to boost production, while expected to pay approximately $200 billion in royalties and taxes to the Venezuelan government over the first 25 years of the deal.

Trump called the agreement "the biggest oil deal in the history of the world," stating that Venezuelan oil would help replenish the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and described it as a "gift" to the American people.

According to official data, the U.S. had proven crude oil and associated condensate reserves of approximately 46 billion barrels at the end of 2024.

Venezuela Oil Production Boost Unlikely in Near Term

Despite the optimism surrounding the deal, analysts have warned that it may not be as favorable as it appears. GasBuddy analyst Patrick De Haan stated that U.S. refinery utilization is already near capacity and may not be able to process more oil, even from Venezuela.

De Haan said Trump's oil deal sounds "promising," but extracting these approximately 65 billion barrels of reserves will take years, and fuel prices will not drop immediately or within months.

Notably, according to Reuters, Chevron announced plans earlier this month to expand its Venezuelan operations. The company expects to invest over $7 billion in the next five years to double production. It should be noted that this agreement is separate from the U.S.-Venezuela deal and focuses on expanding existing projects.