Is American Greed To Blame For This?

[theking]

No other nation in the world produces more oil than the US — so why do we count on countries like Saudi Arabia to supply us with crude?

While the U.S. is the world’s top producer of oil, it’s also the world’s top gas guzzler.

Inflation, spurred by supply chain issues and Russia’s war in Ukraine has driven up the cost of this valuable resource. On top of that, Hurricane Ian forced offshore producers in the U.S. to scale back production.

Even the head of Saudi Arabia’s state-led oil company, Saudi Aramco, is concerned. Earlier this month, he issued a dire warning that prices could spike soon due to Aramco's “extremely low” capacity.

Which means Americans should be preparing for a very expensive winter.

But with President Biden set to release 25 million more barrels of the country’s “oil piggy bank” to the market by the end of the year and the supply of diesel running dangerously low, many Americans may be wondering why not just hold onto that supply to keep the lights on here?

At $60 or more for a tank, it can be frustrating to watch as domestic oil leaves U.S. ports faster than foreign oil comes in. But it’s a decades-old challenge, and only the nature of the crisis has changed.

The United States is the world’s top producer of oil (including crude, other petroleum liquids, and biofuels) and has been since 2018. According to the U.S. Energy Information Agency, it’s not even close.

The EIA reports that as of 2021, the U.S. produced 18.88 million barrels per day — or about 10 million per day more than no. 2 Saudi Arabia (10.84 million) and no. 3 Russia (10.78 million).

The EIA also notes that the U.S. is the largest oil consumer, using 20.54 million barrels a day, or 20% of the global stock, and well ahead of no. 2 China (14.01 million). The U.S. imported 7.86 million barrels of oil per day last year, the EIA report reveals.