Oil and Gas Production in the United States

Abstract

After studying large oil and gas production maps of the entire United States for a while, certain patterns may start to emerge. It is obvious where the established oil and gas production is and where it is not. After more viewing, it may seem that oil and gas production trends are seen and the gaps between them result in questions as to why there is oil and gas found in some areas and not in others. Fig. 1.1. The question as to why commercial accumulations of hydrocarbons exist in some areas and not in others is due to geologic and stratigraphic reasons. The reasons involve subsurface rock deformation and structure and the specific lithology and petrophysics of the possible reservoir quality rocks having favorable porosity and permeability encountered at depth. More wells will need to be drilled in non-producing areas to further test the current ideas. On the maps, oil production is usually represented in red, gas production is in green and dry holes are in gray.