11.3 million barrels per day, makes us the World’s largest oil producer.
Interior Secretary Zinke says he expects the USA to top 14 million barrels per day, year after next (2020). By some measures, we have more untapped oil in the ground than any other country - hundreds of years worth.
Separately, we are also the World’s largest natural gas producer (since 2009).
From liquefied gas on the light end, through gasoline and heating oil, to asphalt on the heavy end, there are lots of oil and gas products (hydrocarbons) used in our economy, which get rolled up into the Headline number for “oil” use. Some of what we import in one form, is refined and then used or exported in another form. Not all of it is for energy - much is used for paving, roofing shingles, plastics, fertilizers - even pharmaceuticals, flavors and fragrances.
A good example is the very thick (heavy), high sulfur (sour) crude oil and bitumen from Venezuela. The US built the refineries on the Gulf that could handle that product. We import a lot of their oil, produce products like asphalt and shingles, and a large percentage of the products are then immediately exported.
Out of the total 20 million b/d of hydrocarbon fuels the US uses per day, about one million of that is biofuels like ethanol, which are produced domestically. Six to seven million b/d are exported as products. So our domestic consumption of actual oil and gas (for domestic use) is more like 12 or 13 million b/d.
Although we still need imports to keep all our industries working, we are already essentially energy independent in terms of vehicle fuels and heating oil (including that used for generating electricity), if push comes to shove.
New Mexico is the number three producer in the US. If Lea County in New Mexico was a state it alone would be the number seven US producer.
Pipelines are coming to the area, but in the meantime trucks and trains are taking the crude oil for refining.
In 2017, the United States imported approximately 10.14 million barrels per day (MMb/d) of petroleum from about 84 countries. Petroleum includes crude oil, hydrocarbon gas liquids, refined petroleum products such as gasoline and diesel fuel, and biofuels including ethanol and biodiesel. Crude oil accounted for about 79% of U.S. gross petroleum imports in 2017 and non-crude oil petroleum accounted for about 21% of gross petroleum imports.
In 2017, the United States exported about 6.38 MMb/d of petroleum to 186 countries, of which about 18% was crude oil and 82% was non-crude oil petroleum. The resulting net imports (imports minus exports) of petroleum were about 3.77 MMb/d.
The top five source countries of U.S. petroleum imports in 2017 were Canada, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Venezuela, and Iraq.
"Never export your raw materials."
From liquefied gas on the light end, through gasoline and heating oil, to asphalt on the heavy end, there are lots of oil and gas products (hydrocarbons)
We need more refining capacity. We could be making gasoline and diesel from natural gas, we need to get on the ball there too.