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WASHING TON: In the two years since Washington lifted a 40-year ban on oil exports, tankers filled with US crude have landed in more than 30 countries, ranging from massive economies like China and India to tiny Togo. The repeal has unleashed a flood of US shale oil, undercutting global crude prices, eroding the clout of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and seizing market share from many of its member countries. In 2005, before the shale revolution, the United States had net imports of 12.5 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude and fuels compared to just 4 million bpd today. US producers are making new customers out of some of the world’s biggest oil-importing nations in Asia and Europe, posing a serious competitive threat to the only other countries that produce as much crude: Saudi Arabia and Russia. At home, the export boom has filled pipelines and sparked a surge of investment in new shipping infrastructure on the Gulf Coast. US producers now export between 1.5 million and 2 million barrels of crude a day, which could rise to about 4 million by 2022. The nation’s output is expected to account for more than 80 percent of global supply growth in the next decade, according to Paris-based International Energy Agency. Much of the increased flow will go to China, the world’s top importer and, since November, the largest buyer of US crude other than Canada. Chen Bo, president of Unipec China’s largest buyer of US crude told Reuters that the firm expects to double US imports this year to 300,000 bpd as it seeks to expand sales in Asia and find new customers for US exports in other regions, including Europe. Unipec the trading arm of Asia’s largest refiner, state-owned Sinopec is also considering long-term crude supply deals with US pipeline and terminal operators. The firm may also partner with such firms to expand and improve US export infrastructure, Chen said in an interview.
