The administration of US President Donald Trump is in talks with Venezuela's interim government to acquire a stake in the South American country's vast oil resources. This was reported by Axios, citing two US officials.
The historic deal would more than double US oil reserves, drawing from a country with the largest proven reserves in the world.
"To call this deal huge would be an understatement," one of the officials said.
Adding pressure to sign the deal are the wars in Iran and Ukraine, which have disrupted global oil supplies and driven up prices.
The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve is now at a 40-year low.
Details are still being worked out, but the discussions involve more than a dozen productive oil fields - not all of Venezuela's 300 billion barrels of proven reserves.
The fields in question, which have 90 billion barrels of proven reserves, were controlled by former Venezuelan insiders - including some who have been indicted - as well as interests once controlled by China, the official said.
In exchange for giving the U.S. a stake, the Venezuelan government would benefit from private companies, including American firms, that would develop the fields and bring more oil revenue back to the country.
The oil deal with Venezuela would be a defining moment for President Trump, who has made U.S. energy security and dominance in the Western Hemisphere pillars of his so-called "Donrow Doctrine".
"President Trump is close to securing America's energy future for generations to come, not just in the United States but throughout the hemisphere," a second official said.
Trump had begun privately discussing ways to acquire a stake in Venezuelan oil fields even before he authorized the Jan. 3 seizure of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, who is accused of narcoterrorism in New York.
Venezuela's oil sector has been in a bad shape due to a legacy of socialist mismanagement by Maduro and his predecessor Hugo Chavez since he took power in 1999.
The talks were led by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez.
Last month, senior State and Defense Department officials met with their counterparts in Caracas to discuss more details.
White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller also plays a key role.
The administration is sensitive to accusations that Rodriguez would give Venezuela's natural resources to the United States, one official said, so "we are doing everything we can to show how this will benefit the people of Venezuela because it will be".
The exact timeline for finalizing the deal is unclear, but Energy Secretary Chris Wright is discussing a visit to Venezuela next week.