Spring 2019
13 1
A
ll over North America, the production of oil
and gas is growing at a tremendous pace.
According to the Energy Information
Administration (EIA), US gas production
averaged 83.2 billion ft
3
/d in 2018, and crude
production exceeded 11.7 million bpd late 2018. In
Canada, oilsands output continues to grow, from
2.4 million bpd in 2015 to an expected 3.1 million bpd
by 2020.
Furthermore, the prolific shale plays also churn out
immense amounts of natural gas and natural gas
liquids (NGLs). Crude, LNG and refined energy
products are all being exported in record amounts.
All of this requires extensive expansion and new
development of tanks and terminals.
US Gulf Coast
In the last 10 years, shale drilling in the Permian basin
in Texas has caused oil output to more than triple to
3 million bpd. The output, which consists of light oil,
gas and NGLs, has created both domestic and export
markets. Since the lifting of the crude export ban in
2015, outgoing shipments have been expanding. The
EIA reported that crude exports exceeded
2.4 million bpd in December 2018, and are expected to
climb even further in 2019.
