Cabimas is a town on the shore of Maracaibo Lake in Zulia State in northwestern Venezuela. Before 1900, Venezuela was known to possess commercial quantities of petroleum. One major find was the 'Zumaque 1' well in 1914, in the area of Mene Grande, about 50 miles (80 km) southeast of Cabimas. However, it was the blowout of the Barroso No. 2 well in Cabimas in 1922 that marked the beginning of Venezuela's modern history as a major producer.