Will California gas prices drop after U.S. raid in Venezuela?

Fuel experts say it’s too early to tell what effect the ouster of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro will have on gas prices, especially in California where motorists pay the highest amount per gallon in the continental U.S.

“It doesn’t have a short-term impact,” said David Hackett, president of Stillwater Associates, a transportation energy consulting company in Irvine. “I think longer term though,” a revival of Venezuela’s oil production may lead to “additional world supply and probably would result in lower volatility and energy prices.”

Maduro and his wife were captured in a raid Saturday in a joint military operation, taken into custody and flown to the U.S. where they face narco-terrorism conspiracy and cocaine importation conspiracy charges.

Arraigned in a Manhattan federal courthouse Monday, the couple submitted not guilty pleas.

In addition to the drug charges, the Trump administration says the toppling of Maduro can pave the way for U.S companies to re-enter the oil-rich Venezuelan market.

“We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies — the biggest anywhere in the world — go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastruc...