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Energy Facts

Below are facts about Virginia energy and the value of oil and natural gas:

  • Currently, the oil and natural gas industry supports over 143,000 jobs in the Commonwealth of Virginia. These jobs add $12 billion to Virginia’s gross state product, or 3.1% of its wealth.
  • Virginia uses approximately 173 million barrels and 391 billion cubic feet of natural gas per year.
  • Area off the shore of Virginia could produce more than half a billion barrels of oil and more than 2.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. 
  • Half a billion barrels of oil is enough to fuel all 4 million cars in Virginia for more than four years. 2.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas can heat all 3.2 million Virginia households for more than 11 years.
  • The United States is estimated to have enough natural gas to meet 100 percent of current domestic demand for at least 90 years.
  • The oil and natural gas industry had a combined market value of crude oil and natural gas production of more than $665 million during 2009.
  • The average American. citizen uses about 2 barrels of oil every month.America’s oil and natural gas industry supports 9.2 million jobs throughout the economy and 7.5 percent of GDP.
  • The national average annual salary for oil and gas exploration and production is $96,844 or about $47 per hour – more than double the average annual salary of all occupations.
  • America produces 5.4 million barrels of crude oil per day, 164 million barrels, per month, and almost 2 billion barrels per year.
  • The United States produces 72 billion cubic feet (bcf) of natural gas a day, 2,200bcf per month and 26,000bcf per year.
  • In 2009, 41 percent of total U.S. energy consumption was used in residential and commercial buildings, 30 percent in industrial activities and 29 percent in transportation.
  • 94 percent of U.S. transportation requirements requirements are met by oil to fuel automobiles, trucks, airplanes, boats and other transport vehicles.  41 percent of U.S. industrial requirements are also supplied by oil, including the manufacture of petroleum-based products, such as chemicals, rubber and plastics.   
  • Over the last five years, earnings for the oil and natural gas industry have been in line with U.S. manufacturing – averaging just 7 cents for every dollar of sales.
  • Since 2000, the oil and natural gas industry has invested $1.7 trillion in U.S. capital projects to advance all forms of energy, including alternatives, while reducing the industry’s environmental footprint.
  • Between 2000 and 2008, the industry invested more than $58 billion in new low and zero carbon emissions technologies.
  • Since 1990, GHG emissions associated with every barrel of oil sands crude produced have been reduced by 39 percent.
  • World petroleum consumption is almost 84 million barrels/day.
  • The top five producing countries in the world are:
         - Oil: Saudi Arabia, Russia, United States, Iran and China.
         - Gas: United States, Russia, Canada, Algeria and Iran.
  • The top five consuming countries in the world are:
         - Oil: United States, China, Japan, India, and Russia.
         - Gas: United States, Russia, Iran, Japan, and the UK.
  • The United States imports oil from all over the world, not just one region. The top five imports come from:
         - Canada (2.1 million barrels per day),
         - Mexico (1.2 million barrels per day),
         - Nigeria (1.1 million barrels per day), 
         - Saudi Arabia (1.0 million barrels per day),
         - Venezuela (1.0 million barrels per day).
  • Canada is our biggest supplier of imported oil and natural gas providing 21 percent of the total (US Department of Energy - DOE).
  • Canada possesses approximately 175 billion barrels of oil that can be recovered with today’s technology. Of that number, 170 billion barrels of oil are located in Canada's oil sands (Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers - CAPP.
  • By 2025, production from Canadian oil sands could rise from about 1.4 million barrels per day in 2010 to approximately 3.5 million barrels per day (Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers - CAPP.
  • Canadian oil sands development is expected to lead to the creation of more than 342,000 new American jobs between 2011 and 2015 and add an estimated $34 billion to our country's gross domestic product by 2015.