Judging by the daily volume of crude exploration, the crown has always gone to Saudi Arabia. Not for long, though. In the 2023 fiscal year, the United States exceeded previous caps of crude oil production.
As of December 2023, the US produces 13.21 million barrels of crude oil daily. That figure is 802,000 barrels higher than the country’s daily production in 2022. One of the reasons for the phenomenal increase in daily crude production is the commencement of oil exploration in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska.
Alaska, for one, was a sanctuary and natural reserve before oil explorations commenced there. There was widespread backlash from environmentalists and nature conservationists. According to them, oil exploration in Alaska will topple the stability of that ecosystem.
Ironically, the US is one of the foremost voices in support of the global shelving of fossil fuel consumption. They are equally encouraging the reduction of greenhouse emissions by avoiding all “dirty energy” sources.
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For example, some states in the US are already considering the phasing out of power generation from nuclear, coal, and methane gas sources. However, countries seem to need more to put their energy sources where their mouth is.
Fossil fuel consumption in the US is almost a cultural thing. To make matters worse, commercializing clean energy sources is not catching up with conventional sources. Interestingly, the US seems to be arriving late on the scene of this contest. Recently, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced it would put a cap on its oil exports.
The US and Saudi Arabia are members of OPEC and have agreed to cut the total volume of crude oil exports. According to OPEC, this is a drive to discourage fossil fuel consumption slowly and reduce global pollution.
Several international organizations are incentivizing the transformation of economies around the world to clean energy. For example, major automobile companies are developing cars that run strictly on electricity. Tesla is doing quite well for itself in the American automobile industry.
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Indeed, the transition from fossil fuels and other ‘dirty energy’ to cleaner sources may not be easy, particularly on short notice. Nonetheless, experts are projecting that the earlier this transition pulls through, the better for the planet Earth.
For one, driving electric cars is cheaper when you eliminate the cost of fueling the vehicle. Also, Statista estimates that passenger vehicles contribute to about 3.3 billion tons of air pollution annually. On the contrary, electric vehicles don’t generate fumes that pollute the atmosphere.
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In effect, major consumers of fossil fuels around the globe are trying to map out a master plan to replace ‘dirty energy’ with cleaner sources drastically. Getting new energy sources does not seem to be the problem; instead, transitioning from the old to the new is. However, increasing oil production rates like the US did in 2023 amounts to a step in the wrong direction.
The gas price will likely crash when the fossil fuel market has a flood of crude available. End energy consumers will probably revert to their combustion engines when that happens. Eventually, we will continue heating the Earth’s atmosphere and encourage climate change.
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