The Permian Basin is one of the most important geologic basins in the country. Located in West Texas and New Mexico, the basin is rapidly transforming more than just Texas. The oil here impacts the oil and gas industry around the world.
About the Permian Basin
The Permian Basin uses top recovery techniques such as water flooding and carbon dioxide injections, to maximize the oil extracted. There are boundless resources, too. The basin holds more than twenty of the country’s top 100 oil fields.
The area is expected to have generated an average of 3.9 million barrels per day during 2019. That’s about a third of the country’s total oil production! Such significant oil production is helping the U.S. maintain its position as the world’s largest producer of crude oil. The increase in oil will help the United States become less reliant on oil from other nations.
The Permian Basin has created many new jobs in the region, boosted the region and country’s economies, and reduced oil costs for consumers across the U.S. The impacts of the oil boom are far reaching, and have transformed the global industry.
Impact on the Oil Industry
The Permian Basin oil boom has not only transformed the United States economy, but has had a significant impact on the oil industry worldwide. The balance of power has shifted and now that the US relies less on foreign oil, other countries have been forced to restructure the role oil plays in their economies.
Other nations have also realized that they need to develop their own shale resources in order to keep up. The oil industry is extremely interconnected. Every change doesn’t just impact a single country, but instead impacts the entire network. Relying less on foreign oil gives the United States opportunities to use sanctions as leverage against other countries, a method previously impossible without harming the economy.
Projected Output
Although a drop in oil prices has scared some companies away from the Permian, many still remain positive about the future. According to analysts, the basin’s output will only grow over the coming years. New techniques in hydraulic fracturing and changes in U.S. export policies will help cut costs. The country’s oil production is projected to equal that of Saudi Arabia and Russia combined by 2025.