*US crude output averaged 11.15mn b/d for 2021, down 149,000 b/d on 2020 and some 1.14mn b/d below the record 12.29mn b/d set in 2019 but still comfortably ahead of Saudi Arabia and Russia (MEES, 7 January) as the world’s top producer.
*And whilst Saudi Arabia, and to a lesser extent Russia, are set to grow output in 2022 (MEES, 24 December 2021), so is the USA. Already for Q4 2021, US average output of 11.54mn b/d was the highest quarterly figure since Q1 2020. Latest forecasts from the US government’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) have output rising by 650,000 b/d to average 11.80mn b/d for 2022, and then by a further 610,000 b/d to a new record 12.41mn b/d for 2023 (see chart 1 and table for full data). (CONTINUED - 803 WORDS)
