The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) has released a new report stating that US crude oil proved reserves, led by reserve additions in Texas and North Dakota, increased in 2012.
The report ‘US Crude Oil and Natural Gas Proved Reserves, 2012’ noted that low natural gas prices drove down natural gas proved reserves during the year, ending a 14-year run of consecutive increases in gas reserves, despite notable gains in the Marcellus and Eagle Ford shale gas plays.
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Crude oil and lease condensate, the proved oil reserves, rose by 15.4% in 2012 to 33 billion barrels.
Said to have increased for the fourth year in a row, proved oil reserves in 2012 were the highest since 1976, while tight oil plays accounted for 7.3 billion barrels of proved reserves of crude oil as well as lease condensate in 2012.
From 2011 to 2012, production of crude oil and lease condensate in the country increased by 16%, representing an increase from 5.8 million barrels per day to 6.5 million barrels per day.
Estimated as wet natural gas that includes natural gas plant liquids, natural gas proved reserves decreased by 7.5% in 2012 to 323 trillion cubic feet.
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By GlobalDataThe decline is mainly due to the revision of the proved reserves by operators of their existing natural gas fields downward in response to lower natural gas prices.
EIA administrator Adam Sieminski said: “With natural gas prices higher in 2013 and technology continuing to advance, EIA expects US natural gas proved reserves to increase in 2013.”
EIA’s new report reflects estimates of proved reserves at the end of 2012, which is based on an annual survey conducted for domestic oil and gas well operators.
