In a January Townhall column, I argued that the Venezuela operation was a win for America and a loss for China and Canada. Friday's announcement from the Trump administration of an oil deal with Venezuela confirms that assessment.

The agreement gives the U.S. a majority control of more than 65 billion barrels of proven reserves through a joint venture built around 17 strategic fields, with an initial production target north of 1.5 million barrels per day over a 25-year framework. On paper, it creates the second-largest private holder of proven reserves on the planet, behind only Saudi Aramco.

But Americans need to be realistic about their expectations: this won’t translate into lower gasoline or diesel prices anytime soon. Oil is an extremely investment-heavy industry with massive infrastructure, and Venezuela is a complete wreck after years of communists running it into the ground.

Decades of mismanagement left pumps, pipelines, storage tanks, upgraders, port facilities, and the electrical grid that powers all of it in a state of advanced decay. It’ll take billions of dollars and several years to repair, replace, and modernize that infrastructure. Anyone promising cheaper gasoline by Thanksgiving knows nothing about the oil industry.

But a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single........

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