U.S. crude oil production fell in December to an average 11.063 million barrels per day, according to the Energy Information Administration’s latest monthly report.
U.S. crude oil production fell an average of 58,000 barrels per day, the EIA said on Friday.
U.S. production from the most prolific PADD, PADD 3, stayed the same for the month of December at 7.611 million barrels per day. This includes production from Texas and federal offshore PADD 3 production, as well as New Mexico, Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Alabama.
The second most prolific crude oil PADD, PADD 2, fell from 1.828 million bpd in November to 1.782 million bpd in December. This includes producers such as North Dakota and Oklahoma.
But the production losses likely did not stop in December.
While December is the last full month for which there is actual data, the EIA estimates weekly crude oil production as well, and those estimates are below the 11.063 million bpd the United States saw in December.
For perspective on how sharp of a drop that is, average production in December 2019 was over 12.8 million barrels per day, according to EIA data.
For January, the EIA estimated that some weeks dipped as low as 10.9 million bpd. And the EIA’s most recent production estimates for week ending February 19 pegs total U.S. crude production at an average of just 9.7 million bpd.
This dramatic drop in crude oil production in the previous week is likely courtesy of the Texas Freeze, when refinery and crude oil production had to be curtailed due to freezing temperatures that cut power to millions of residents in the state.
The EIA estimates that U.S. crude production will not exceed the levels seen in 2020 until 2022.
By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com
