U.S. to Overtake Saudi Arabia, Russia as World's Top Energy Producer
The United States, on track to overtake Saudia Arabia as the world's leading oil producer, moves closer to energy self-sufficiency, the International Energy Agency says.
Both results would have been unthinkable even a few short years ago, but the future geography of supply has shifted dramatically due to what IEA calls America's "energy renaissance." The revival can be credited to controversial technologies such as hydraulic fracturing of shale and deepwater production that have enabled the industry to tap into abundant, unconventional sources of natural gas and oil. As a result, new energy frontiers have opened in Pennsylvania and North Dakota. (Related: " Natural Gas Stirs Hope and Fear in Pennsylvania")
The bottom line for the United States is fulfillment of a goal that eluded seven presidents over nearly four decades: energy independence. The U.S., which imports 20 percent of its total energy now, will become
