The oil complex in latin america: Politics, frontiers, and habits of oil rule

Latin America is the second largest oil-producing region in the world, following the Middle East. Major producers, such as Brazil, Mexico, and Venezuela, export to other Latin American countries, in addition to the Caribbean, North America, Europe, and, increasingly, Asia. The US, the world’s largest oil consumer, is the largest purchaser of Latin American oil; approximately 26% of US crude oil imports come from Latin America. Conversely, about 56% of US exports of refined fuels are shipped to Latin America. These trade networks and patterns offer some perspective on Latin America’s global oil connectivity, but say little about how its flows become entangled with (and often deepen) existing structures of economic dependence, colonialism, and geopolitical power in the region (e.g., Bebbington and Bury, 2013; Watts, 2016).