For the first time since 1973, the United States has topped Saudi Arabia and Russia as the largest global producer of crude oil. The news was announced by the Energy Information Agency (EIA) and is based on preliminary estimates from the EIA’s Short-Term Energy Outlook. American output has more than doubled over the last decade, driven in large part by the domestic shale oil boom and cost-cutting measures by U.S. producers. According to the EIA, “Much of the recent growth has occurred in areas such as the Permian region in western Texas and eastern New Mexico, the Federal Offshore Gulf of Mexico, and the Bakken region in North Dakota and Montana.” Light sweet crude oil grades account for much of the growth. The EIA expects U.S. production to remain ahead of all other countries through 2019.
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