Energy Environmental Blog

WSJ: U.S. Oil Production is Surging

Written by Greg Russell | Jan 24, 2012 12:21:45 PM

The WSJ is reporting that the Energy Information Administration (EIA) will soon confirm that oil production in the United States is surging, largely due to increases in shale production:  "The forecast will include new production data from developing oil fields, including the Bakken shale area in North Dakota, which could hold as much of 4.3 billion barrels of recoverable oil. North Dakota's output of oil and related liquids topped 500,000 barrels per day in November, meaning that the state pumped more oil than Ecuador. In fact, U.S. oil production grew faster than in any other country over the last three years and will continue to surge as drillers move away from natural gas due to a growing gas glut, experts say. The glut has sent natural-gas prices to a 10-year low."

Nice.  (Note:  Subscription may be required.)

[Update:  And from the EIA's AEO2012 Early Release:  "Domestic crude oil production is expected to grow by more than 20 percent over the coming decade: Domestic crude oil production increased from 5.1 million barrels per day in 2007 to 5.5 million barrels per day in 2010. Over the next 10 years, continued development of tight oil combined with the development of offshore Gulf of Mexico resources are projected to push domestic crude oil production to 6.7 million barrels per day in 2020, a level not seen since 1994."  (Emphasis is ours.)]