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Oct 23, 2019 - Energy & Environment

The U.S. is a crude oil export powerhouse

Ben Geman
An oil and gas operation

Photo: RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post via Getty Images

The U.S. is now exporting crude oil to more nations than it's importing from, the Energy Information Administration said in a new analysis out Tuesday.

Why it matters: The inflection point highlights the U.S. emergence as a crude export powerhouse and falling import reliance thanks to the domestic production surge.

Where it stands: In the first seven months of the year, the U.S. imported crude from a maximum of 27 nations in a given month, compared to as many as 37 a decade earlier, per EIA.

  • Meanwhile, during the same stretch of 2019, the number export destinations rose as high as 31.
  • U.S. crude oil exports averaged 2.9 million barrels per day during the first half of 2019, according to EIA monthly data.
  • More recent (although less robust) weekly data shows them trending even higher.
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