Chevron told to wind down Venezuela operations

AP/Fuel Fix:

The Trump administration on Tuesday ordered Chevron Corp. to “wind down” operations in Venezuela by Dec. 1, barring the California-based oil giant in the meantime from drilling or exporting, as the U.S. increases pressure on President Nicolás Maduro to give up power.

Chevron is the last major U.S. oil company to do business in crisis-wracked Venezuela, investing in the South American nation's oil fields and machinery over the last century with an estimated value of $2.6 billion, which analysts say Maduro’s government will likely take over.

It's the latest in a series of steps the White House has taken against Maduro, quickening the pace of its push to end his presidency and more than 20 years of socialist rule that critics blame for leading the once rich oil-producing nation to economic and political ruin.

Venezuela sits atop the world's largest oil reserves, yet its political upheaval and economic crunch have led 4.5 million people in recent years to flee their native country, where many lack basic services like running water, electricity, gasoline and functioning hospitals.
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Venezuela was one of the first countries to lose the ability to buy toilet paper several years ago because the country tried to make those selling do so at below costs.  Now the oil business is selling at below cost and it will be hard to make it worthwhile for operations in the "socialist paradise."