Let the Golden Age of Oil Continue

“No one would have predicted it. To the contrary, experts predicted the opposite. In 2008, the International Energy Agency was projecting U.S. production would decline or remain flat for decades. Prior to the recession, the price of oil peaked at nearly $150 a barrel, and with global demand rising, it looked like it would remain at an elevated level forevermore.”

–Rich Lowry, National Review

As Yogi Berra once said, “It’s tough to make predictions, especially about the future.” In the case of the well documented “peak oil” phenomenon, it would appear he was dead on.

Since June of this year, crude oil prices have fallen by about $40 per barrel – or more than 35 percent. Yet American oil production continues to rise.

Domestic oil production has increased by 14% since July of last year – while rising by an unprecedented 71% since 2008. Over Labor Day weekend, American consumers on average enjoyed the lowest gasoline prices seen in four years. And they’re only getting lower.

America’s oil revolution has been met with considerable doubt, much like any improvements in American energy production that don’t rely on subsidies or green propaganda to succeed. These naysayers contend that falling oil and gas prices will make new production unprofitable, forcing companies to slow their operations.

Yet if the innovations responsible for America’s energy renaissance are any indication, improvements in efficiency will allow her golden age of oil to continue.

America’s energy boom can almost entirely be attributed to technological innovations in hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling. Fracking alone saved American consumers nearly $248 billion just last year. And while civil unrest and anti-American terrorists seem to dominate the headlines in some of the world’s largest oil-producing countries, American production has managed to keep the world’s crude oil prices in check.

With proved oil reserves continuing to rise in 2013 and efficiency improvements undoubtedly on the horizon, we can confidently look forward to a better future thanks to America’s traditional energy.