U.S. Likely to Become the World’s Largest Oil Producer in the Next Decade, Says IEA

The U.S. is likely to overtake Russia to become the world’s largest oil producer by 2023 – said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol on Monday during the CERAWeek energy conference. The IEA’s closely watched five-year forecast expects U.S. crude production to reach a record of 12.1 million barrels a day in 2023, surging past Russia, currently the world’s largest crude producer at roughly 11 million barrels a day. The report also highlights the changing role of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), who historically dominated world oil markets. Oil production is expected to grow in Canada, Brazil and Norway—all countries outside OPEC, who, together with the U.S, will add enough barrels to meet growing consumption to the end of the decade. Within OPEC, only the Middle East is expected to raise output, as other members such as Venezuela struggle with internal problems. Still, even with the expectation for the oil demand to go above 100 million barrels a day for the first time next year, IEA expects growth in production to begin slowing down after 2020, with dwindling investments. – Wall Street Journal