North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP), a Barbados-based producer controlled by Venezuelan businessman Alejandro Betancourt López, is set to take over 17 Venezuelan oilfields previously linked to Chinese and Russian interests. The reported 25-year arrangement includes a planned U.S. stake through the Department of Defense’s Office of Strategic Capital, while Bank of America said a new private company could give the U.S. 55% effective output. NABEP currently produces 160,000 to 200,000 barrels per day, while reported targets range from 1 million barrels per day within five years to more than 1.5 million barrels per day; BofA retained a 1.6 million-barrel-per-day target but delayed its expected timing to 2028. The fields span the Orinoco Belt and Lake Maracaibo and contain more than 65 billion barrels of reserves. Reports cited by BofA say the arrangement could attract $100 billion in investment, but the bank said the fiscal benefit for Caracas, production model and effects on Venezuela’s defaulted debt remain uncertain.