The USA would not be energy independent producing 14 million bpd. We would still be importing 5 million bpd.
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Yeah I can’t say that I understand that either. 14.5 million barrels a day is usually cited as being the oil independence number and yet the US consumes something like 18 million barrel’s a day.
The only thing I can guess is that 19 million barrels a day include oil that is imported, refined into gasoline, and shipped back overseas again.
So that 14 million barrel’s a day is the NET US production.
I think you meant net US consumption?
http://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.cfm?id=33&t=6
Directly from the US Energy Information Administration.
18.89 million bpd. That includes .32 million barrels of biofuels. So 18.57 million bpd of crude.
BTW US also imports refined oil products.
BTW II I am for all the above. More oil,coal and natural gas consumption are great. An economic production of energy is good as well as economic efficiency gains.