<p>Over the weekend, the U.S. military entered Venezuela and captured its president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife. Maduro will now face drug and gun charges in New York, and some members of the Trump administration have described the operation as a law enforcement mission.</p><br><p>President Donald Trump has taken a different tack. He has justified the operation by asserting that America is going to “take over” Venezuela’s oil reserves, even suggesting that oil companies might foot the bill for the broader occupation and rebuilding effort. Trump officials have told oil companies that the U.S. might not help them recover lost assets&nbsp;unless they fund the American effort now, <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2026/01/03/trump-venezuela-oil-us-companies-return-00709782" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">according to <em>Politico</em></a>.</p><br><p>Such a move seems openly imperialistic, ill-advised, and unethical — to say the least. But is it even possible? On this week’s episode of Shift Key, Rob talks to Rory Johnston, a Toronto-based oil markets analyst and the founder of <a href="https://www.commoditycontext.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Commodity Context</a>. They discuss the current status of the Venezuelan oil industry, what a rebuilding effort would cost, and whether a reopened Venezuelan oil industry could change U.S. energy politics — or even, as some fear, bring about a new age of cheap fossil fuels.&nbsp;</p><br><p>Shift Key is hosted by Robinson Meyer, the founding executive editor of Heatmap, and Jesse Jenkins, a professor of energy systems engineering at Princeton University. Jesse is off this week.</p><br><p><strong>Mentioned:&nbsp;</strong></p><br><p><a href="https://heatmap.news/energy/venezuela-blockade-sanctions" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The 4 Things Standing Between the U.S. and Venezuela’s Oil</a></p><br><p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2026/01/03/trump-venezuela-oil-us-companies-return-00709782" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Trump admin sends tough private message to oil companies on Venezuela</a></p><br><p>Previously on Shift Key: <a href="https://heatmap.news/podcast/shift-key-s2-e24-canada-oil-tariffs" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Trump Policy That Would Be Really Bad for Oil Companies</a></p><br><p>--</p><p>This episode of Shift Key is sponsored by …</p><br><p><strong>Heatmap Pro</strong>&nbsp;brings all of our research, reporting, and insights down to the local level. The software platform tracks all local opposition to clean energy and data centers, forecasts community sentiment, and guides data-driven engagement campaigns.&nbsp;<a href="https://d2qwfv04.na1.hubspotlinks.com/Ctc/X+113/d2QWfV04/VXhfTJ8GbX4ZW62B_ZM6_BMySW4lQ0X35GT0T_N5SJSmC9l0H-W7YbdcM6lZ3m1W2TjZgH7Y4q3kW2vT2xV44S72lW6vXwnl6p0p4JW5H2h-w3WKwr5W8tjRFh4YbQvSW4ZMqfw4gwLgxW5dpshN6fys40W5pZ2rY8YpMDbW8ytT3j5FlxKCW1j21w57ymRvGW1fYTW15qVyWmVYQW694c9zpWW5QB5vK100hrlW97SJZJ45jNcgVfykF-8cXzNdW9j66g28J-G2qW7NH6Pj2RKfsfW39rWj_6s7c2VM8MQ5-tPgQcW5drMkM1CCm1JW6Wwf3d7nqldWW6Ww7Dj56KS2bW4sT9YK3rK5-JW4vPdc-4QvgKSN8FrzLdFPB3RW7FYSq97sBhjPVQfHjf92G4SKW1J49Gg3_WdP1VQ27Tx23lTrcW5wWklb9btc4GW87Psb08Xc5vfN4rl4KHCrJg_W4B9Tpk4hSg94W1yhDhB1JLgj6W3gQ1nw8DdyL3W5J2QlL85dgW8W5_TQ0Z8RTb4GW156WBb1yc_JKW35cMS4983yNSN2tv2gVr4h1DW4pp8b96ZkWwfW5Lsv9-8-b-YPW7C9lWK43F5nLW5vQcT32S9tBJW7qmPkh23z9l1W5vRr5Y3JgCCJW6J4LYC1RFT0yW4fZw4V7c2x2RVPMYBj3J7sxdW3Fh5_w7wBkTNW50Fk_m3t0x_LW6KdlJm7N-KRSW90WW0v1QrSdyW5LC9ZX57hNGCW2mLg191BW3S0W3zTHPJ858jTcW7F5cYm333mYtW5mgXps3Q1HTHW2G51_Y2WY0_gW2Y6fs58lhp77W7RDmJ32QTSGyN8FSjw_Xv7RgW4dgR2H89lDMZW6c4Npf8lY519W6BjLQ48XP8K6W6m5WWq5P-W0VW79T3K16nrTqfW1lgrf46QsmDHV4KGRG7jZrZYW53sS7z2rmRk1W1fHqch8dZynkW94kM8k99bCB6V_zfv356qwhNW7q9-V04pyV98f4Wl6Gq04" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Book a demo</a>&nbsp;today to see the premier intelligence platform for project permitting and community engagement.</p><br><p>Music for Shift Key is by Adam Kromelow.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>