Paul Krugman here dispels Trump's Venezuelan oil boondoggle: Venezuela's extra-heavy Orinoco crude is only worth extracting if the price per barrel rises above $80. Current business model for American producers requires oil to stay above $62. Trump allegedly wants oil to drop to $50 per barrel. Seeing a math problem? Stated more explicitly: how does a resource that costs $80 per barrel to extract get us to $50 per barrel? It doesn't: at best, Venezuelan oil must appear, from the American perspective as a hedge against high oil prices, for instance those seen during global conflict.

https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/the-emperors-new-oil-wealth