GasBuddy analyst says Venezuelan oil may not ease U.S. fuel prices
GasBuddy’s Patrick De Haan said U.S. refiners are already running near capacity, limiting room to process more oil from Venezuela or elsewhere.
President Donald Trump’s recent announcement of a deal giving the U.S. access to billions of barrels of Venezuelan oil reserves has sparked optimism about gas prices coming down despite the Iran war’s energy shock.
However, GasBuddy analyst Patrick De Haan warned it may not be so simple.
The Refining Capacity Question In a post on X on Monday, De Haan said that refiners in the U.S. are “running at the closest pace to capacity in years.” He added that there was no “more room for U.S. refiners to process more oil,” be it oil from Venezuela or anywhere else. “Refiners have been operating over 95% all summer long,” the analyst said. with refineries running at the closest pace to capacity in years, there's really no more room for U.S. refiners to process more oil- Venezuelan oil or anything else… refiners have been operating over 95% all summer long — Patrick De Haan (@GasBuddyGuy) August 31, 2026 Read Also: Trump Says Iran Is 'Totally Defeated,' Rules Out Nuclear Strikes: 'There’s No Reason for It' De Haan also responded to a user in the thread of the post who asked whether Venezuelan crude oil needed specialized refining practices. “Yes, processing heavy oil (also high sulfur) does require more refinery complexity,” the analyst said in his response. yes, processing heavy oil (also high sulfur) does require more refinery complexity — Patrick De Haan (@GasBuddyGuy) August 31, 2026 De Haan had earlier questioned the move to acquire Venezuelan oil, saying how the U.S. could lay claim to another country’s natural resources.
The analyst also said that the move would require billions of dollars worth of investments to bear fruit and translate to lower gas prices in the U.S.
According to data from the American Automobile Association (AAA), the national average price for a gallon of gasoline was $4.0807 on Monday.
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Bilello said that the national average gas price remained above $4/gallon, which was a “painful” new record for American consumers.
It’s also worth considering that Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had earlier issued an emergency fuel waiver to allow oil producers to shift to winter blends of gasoline earlier than usual in a bid to decrease fuel costs and provide relief.
Read Also: Analyst Says National Average Gas Price Will Likely Fall Below $4/Gallon by Labor Day, but There’s a Catch: ‘Still…the Most Expensive…’ Check out more of Future Of Mobility coverage by following this link.
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