(MENAFN) According to the statistical arm of the U.S. Department of Energy, the US crude oil output increased 78,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 8.428 million bpd last week, the highest since 1986, driven by a burgeoning shale production, Xinhua reported.
The US met 87 percent of its energy needs in 2013 and 90 percent in December, the most since March 1985, while it is rapidly approaching a self-sufficiency rate of 90 percent, according to data provided by the federal agency.
The Energy Information Administration (EIA) said that crude output will average 8.46 million bpd in 2014 and 9.24 million in 2015, up from 7.45 million last year. Next year's projection would be the highest annual average since 1972.
The EIA said that the U.S. is expected to become the world's top oil producer by 2015 on the shale oil boom, outstanding top energy producers such as Russia and Saudi Arabia.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.