Oill and gas extraction industry gross output in the U.S. 1998-2019

The gross output of the U.S. oil and gas extraction industry stood at 375.2 billion U.S. dollars in 2019, down from 405.3 billion dollars in the previous year. There has been an increase in output over the last decades, but growth has not been steady, as it fluctuated heavily following the 2008 financial crisis and the oil glut in 2015 and 2016.

Domestic oil production

In 2008, U.S. oil and gas output reached one of its highest points before scaling back significantly in the following years. U.S. oil production had been decreasing slowly over the previous decade, until technological advances and a surge in oil prices following the recession made domestic production viable again. Though initially declining until 2012, daily consumption in the U.S. has since been increasing again.

Shale on the rise

During the recession, the U.S. oil and gas industry made use of lower interest rates to invest in raising domestic production and thereby avoiding volatile oil prices on the international market. Shale gas and oil that was previously inaccessible became economically feasible to extract through new methods such as hydraulic fracturing. Production soared and exceeded demand, resulting in an oversupply by the mid-2010s.