US 2018 Oil, Gas Output Surges Outpaced All Countries
US natural gas and crude oil production increased last year at the fastest pace ever for a single country.
US gas output soared 86 billion cubic metres in 2018, the largest annual increase by any country ever, according to statistics published by BP Plc on the 11th June.
That is roughly equivalent to consumption in the UK, one of the oldest users of the fuel, and almost 40% more than the previous record set by Russia in 2010.
And in a twin first, US oil output jumped 2.2 million barrels a day — also the largest amount ever by a single country in a year.
“What you saw last year was really quite amazing — this amazing unique double first for the US,” said Spencer Dale, BP’s global chief economist.
“This is pretty astonishing growth and I don’t think this is some sort of unique aberration. This is a function of the US shale revolution in both oil and natural gas — it’s alive and well and it’s powering strongly.”
The jump in the production of the polluting fossil fuels happened three decades after nations including the US set up a United Nations framework to try save the climate.
The figures will stoke angst in those continuing negotiations, where countries are seeking to collaborate and tighten greenhouse-gas targets ahead of the Paris climate deal to limit the risk of runaway heatwaves, drought and flooding after next year.
As part of the talks, they are discussing historical responsibility for the climate crisis.
Source: Rigzone