KINGSTON, Jamaica – Venezuela's oil production is poised to reverse a dramatic decline that has seen exports fall by nearly half during Hugo Chávez's time as president. Following Chávez's death Tuesday, Venezuela, which is a member of OPEC and sits on the world's second-largest oil reserves, faces near-term political uncertainty that could bring further turmoil to its oil industry. And even under the best circumstances it would take years to increase production and exports, analysts say. But any new government would have a powerful economic incentive to make that a top priority. Exports fell from 3 million barrels per day in 2000 to 1.7 million barrels per day in 2011. Chávez relied heavily on the country's oil income to fund social programmes, but reinvested relatively little of it to exploit new oilfields and replace depleted ones.
