Venezuela’s Oil Production Plans Are Entirely Unrealistic

Despite a near economic collapse, shattered petroleum industry infrastructure and empty government coffers, Venezuela’s oil minister Tareck El Aissami continues to talk-up the prospects of the OPEC members crude oil output significantly expanding. In a June 21 interview with Bloomberg El Aissami claimed that Venezuela would quadruple its oil output by the end of 2021. The oil minister further asserted that regardless of U.S. sanctions foreign investment would gush into the founding OPEC member’s petroleum industry and production would…