Report: United States will be leading oil producer by 2020

by Stibbs & Co., P.C. on November 13, 2012

The United States is expected to retake its previously held position as the world's top oil producer, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). Only a few years ago, surpassing Saudi Arabia as a top oil producer may have seemed nearly impossible, but with the booming energy sector in Houston and the spread of new drilling methods and technologies, the oil and gas industry in the United States is in a strong position, experts say.

The IEA reported that this may occur by 2020. The report also expects U.S. energy use to decline by that year, as fuel-efficiency standards developed by the Obama administration have made an impact on managing the country's energy use and will balance out increased production. In one example, a legislative mandate requires newly manufactured cars and light-duty trucks to average 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025.

The United States is expected to remain at the top of the energy industry through the late 2020s, according to the IEA's World Energy Outlook 2012 report.

The report also emphasized how various innovations in the U.S. oil and gas have revitalized the sector, reversing previous years of declining oil production.

"It basically means we're going to be making more money here in the U.S. off of oil production than has been anticipated," Craig Pirrong, director of University of Houston's Global Energy Management Institute, told the news source.

Growth nationally and locally in Texas will present U.S.-based companies with the opportunity to consider global business expansion and mergers and acquisitions in the attempt to unlock untapped reserves.

Such considerations create legal implications. Working with business attorneys at a local energy law firm in Spring, Texas could help Houston oil and gas exploration firms negotiate deals effectively, navigating the murky waters of acquisition law.

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