U.S. On Track to Become the World’s Biggest Producer of Liquid Petroleum

Friday, October 03, 2014
Fracking site in Colorado (photo: Ed Andrieski, AP)

Move over Saudi Arabia, there’s about to be a new king of liquid petroleum in the world: the United States.

 

With U.S. production booming, experts predict Saudi Arabia will be surpassed in the production of oil, ethane, propane and other liquid fuels by its No. 2 rival this month or next, the Financial Times (FT) reports.

 

As of August, American and Saudi companies were nearly even in their output of 11.5 million barrels a day. If the U.S. does pass up Saudi Arabia, it will be the first time that’s happened since 1991.

 

American oil corporations have significantly increased oil production since last decade thanks to hydraulic fracturing (fracking) and other developments in drilling technology that opened up previously untouched reserves in Texas and North Dakota and known, but harder-to-reach deposits elsewhere.

 

Expanded oil exports have helped reduce the U.S. trade deficit, while shrinking the nation’s need to import petroleum from volatile regions like the Middle East. Imports are expected to account for only 21% of U.S. liquid fuel consumption next year, down from 60% in 2005, the FT’s Ed Crooks and Anjli Raval reported.

 

The increased production is causing a fall in the price of oil. The benchmark Brent crude was at $95.60 a barrel last week, down nearly 25% from its peak of more than $125 in early 2012.

 

But with the increased production from fracking has come contaminated groundwater and even earthquakes in some areas where the technique is used.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

 

To Learn More:

U.S. Poised to Become World’s Leading Liquid Petroleum Producer (by Ed Crooks and Anjli Raval, Financial Times)

U.S. Seen as Biggest Oil Producer after Overtaking Saudi Arabia (by Grant Smith, Bloomberg)

Energy: The Indispensable Country (by Ed Crooks and Anjli Raval, Financial Times)

U.S. Now Leads the World in Oil and Gas Production (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)

Comments

Moe 10 years ago
Sometimes you wonder who is more greedy the Arab countries or the United States. I think Both. And these Politicians line their pockets with our money and they get it from these greedy corporations who could care less about the working class as long as they can get their money. We will never see the day the working class get any help. Your politicians have the Best Health care (voted on by themselves) and the Best Retirement you could ask for again voted on by themselves. No simple solution.
larry schrock 10 years ago
Brian: Two major oil fields have not even been taped Utah and Ga. Utah has 10x the reserves as the UAE .There keeping it quite for now.
Earle Stone 10 years ago
So if all that is true, WHY ARE WE STILL PAYING OVER THREE DOLLARS A GALLON AT THE PUMP. IT IS BECAUSE OF CORPORATE GREED! They will export as much as they can just to keep the supply and demand up high enough to continue to rob the American people. GREED, Greed!
brian 10 years ago
Hydraulic fracturing is already reaching PEAK. So enjoy the maybe two years that you have left. All this joy is short term meaningless data.
mixplix 10 years ago
Nothing from the DOE (Department of Energy) all from the technology of the oil companies. The DOE has done nothing to get us off foreign oil, Carters dream, and it has costs us 23.3 billion just last year and it employes 16,000 government workers that got paid for doing nothing for over thirty years.

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