The National Post reports in its Wednesday edition that President Donald Trump's efforts to access Venezuelan crude are bolstering support for a proposed pipeline to facilitate Canadian oil shipments to China and other Asian markets. A Bloomberg dispatch to the Post reports that U.S. Midwest refineries are set up for Canada's heavy crude, but prices fell as traders feared that a potential removal of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro could lead to increased U.S. access to Venezuela's similar oil resources. Commodity Context's Rory Johnson says, "Once Venezuelan oil is not just unblocked but unsanctioned, it will begin competing more directly with Canadian barrels on the U.S. Gulf Coast." He says Venezuelan oil could get to the region "much more cheaply than can barrels shipped by pipeline all the way from Alberta." Premier Danielle Smith has spearheaded the push for a new pipeline capable of carrying one million barrels a day west, to the B.C. coast, where it could be loaded onto tankers for sale in growing Asian countries. The forced change of leadership in Venezuela highlights the urgency of such a project. Ms. Smith said we need to "expedite the development of pipelines to diversify our oil export markets."