The U.S.' crude oil production grew 11% in 2019, surpassing 12 million barrels per day (bpd) for the first time in its history, the country's Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in a statement on Monday. Crude oil production in the U.S. averaged 12.23 million bpd in 2019, up from 10.99 million bpd in 2018, marking an 11% increase.
The U.S.'s monthly crude oil output averaged 12.86 million bpd in November 2019 to mark the highest monthly crude oil production in U.S. history, the EIA said. Crude oil output in the U.S. has increased dramatically since 2008 with the shale revolution that has enabled shale oil and gas production from tight rock formations by using horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing.
The U.S. state of Texas continued to produce more crude oil than any other state or region in the country last year, and accounted for 41% of total crude oil output in 2019. Crude oil production in Texas increased by around 660,000 bpd from 2018 to average 5.07 million bpd in 2019. It reached a monthly record high of 5.35 million bpd in December 2019.
This increase was mostly driven by major production growth in the Permian region located in western Texas and southeastern New Mexico, and accounted for 53% of the U.S.' total oil production increase in 2019. In the state of New Mexico, the Permian region drove an oil production increase of 248,000 bpd, or 36%, in 2019 from the previous year. New Mexico was made the second-largest state-level growth in oil output last year, accounting for 20% of the U.S.' total increase.
The U.S. Gulf of Mexico saw its crude oil production grow by 126,000 bpd in 2019, and led to the region's highest annual average production of 1.88 million bpd last year. The states of Colorado and North Dakota also set record production levels in 2019 by reaching approximately 514,000 bpd and 1.4 million bpd, respectively, the EIA said in the statement.
"Increases in these states and regions more than offset production declines elsewhere. Alaska’s crude oil production decreased for the second year in a row, and California’s production declined for the fifth year in a row," it added. The EIA said it forecasts that U.S. crude oil production will continue to increase to average 13.2 million bpd in 2020 and to 13.6 million bpd in 2021.
"Most of the expected production growth will occur in the Permian region of Texas and New Mexico," it said.
Anadolu Agency
