More or Less Does Venezuela really have the biggest oil reserves in the world?
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Jan 10, 2026 
Artem Abramov, the lead of oil and gas research at Rystad Energy, dives into Venezuela's complex oil landscape. He discusses how Venezuela boasts 300 billion barrels of oil reserves, yet production has plummeted due to economic mismanagement. Abramov addresses why reserve estimates have remained stagnant over decades and evaluates the feasibility of restoring production within 18 months. He also highlights the challenges of extracting Venezuela's heavy oil and offers insights into the costs and timeline for revitalizing the oil industry.
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300 Billion Headline Hides Economic Reality
- Venezuela officially claims 300 billion barrels of oil reserves, which exceeds Saudi Arabia and the US combined.
- But 'proven reserves' count only economically extractable oil at current prices and technology, so headline figures can mislead.
Oil Built Venezuela’s Economy—and Its Dependency
- Venezuela once lived off oil and used export revenues to import everything, stunting other industries.
- That dependency helped cause the severe production collapse from millions of bpd to around one million today.
Reserves Move With Price And Technology
- Proven reserves depend on market prices and current technology, so the same field can shift between 'proven' and 'unproven.'
- Artem Abramov and Hal Hodson stress that reserve numbers move with prices and technical feasibility.