Only 44 out of the nearly 300 oil fields discovered in Venezuela to the end of 1965 could be classified as giants, i.e., fields having resources of at least 100 million bbl of oil. Giant fields have been discovered in three of the sedimentary basins of the country. The average time lag for the recognition of an oil field as a giant is 8 years and 2 months. The estimated resources

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of all giant fields in Venezuela are 27.6 billion bbl. The average for the country is 628 million bbl per giant. Even if the resources of the Bolivar Coastal field were only 500 million bbl, the average resources would be 264 million bbl of oil per giant field. It is possible to combine the data on the giant Venezuelan fields with the study of the oil resources of the country. The ultimate number of giants is 78; ten giant fields had been discovered but had not been recognized by the end of 1965, leaving 24 giants undiscovered. It is estimated that 40 percent of the oil resources of Venezuela are in the giant fields alone.

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