Mene Grande residents hope renewed US interest and oil projects under negotiation will revive Venezuela’s oil birthplace. The nearby Zumaque I well, producing since 1914, now yields only 20 barrels a day, while reported blackouts in the town last up to 17 hours.
The United States has claimed a 20% stake in Venezuela’s oil reserves, including many fields around Mene Grande. President Donald Trump called Washington’s oil investment the “greatest deal ever made” and claimed Venezuelan crude would double US reserves and guarantee American energy dominance for a century.
About 27,000 residents remain in Mene Grande after years of economic crisis, underinvestment and political turmoil hollowed out the region and drove mass emigration. Residents also contend with crumbling roads and infrastructure; some wells are better suited to a museum than an operating oil field.
