By Anders Lorenzen

Despite trying to position itself as one of the leading countries in the world when it comes to climate action and diversifying to clean energy, the US remains the world’s largest oil producer for the sixth year running.

Analysis by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), a US government body, found that crude oil production leads global oil production with a record- breaking average production of 12.9 million barrels per day (bpd).

New record

In December 2023 crude oil production in the country hit a new monthly record high of over 13.3 million bpd, according to the agency.

In a statement EIA said: “The US produced more crude oil than any nation at any time, according to our International Energy Statistics, for the past six years in a row.”

In Saudi Arabia, the world’s second largest oil producer, the government in January ordered the state oil company Aramco to halt its oil expansion plan and to target a maximum sustained production capacity of 12 million barrels per day (bpd), one million bpd below a target announced in 2020.

The EIA analysis comes as OPEC+ members led by Saudi Arabia and Russia agreed to extend voluntary oil output cuts of 2.2 million barrels per day into the second quarter, giving extra support to the market amid concerns over global growth and rising output outside the group.

During the UN annual climate talks COP28 countries last year agreed that fossil fuels should be phased down, with the writing on the wall making it clearer than ever before that the fossil fuel industry is on borrowed time.