Permian oil output sets record for third straight month

(Bloomberg) — Production from America’s Permian Basin reached a record high for the third month in a row in January as a red-hot price rally keeps shale drillers busy. 

Crude supply from the basin, which includes Texas and New Mexico, averaged 5.06 million barrels a day in January, surpassing the 5 million mark for the first time in data going back to 2007, according to the Energy Information Administration. The previous record was set in December. The agency also revised its November volumes higher, surpassing a long-time record set in March 2020.

Permian output continues to exceed every OPEC member, except Saudi Arabia. Production is set to climb even more with oil prices at a seven-year high spurring oil explorers to pump away. The basin has recovered the most quickly from the drop in oil output that ensued when the pandemic hit because of its low production costs. It is spearheading growth in American oil output while other shale regions lag. 

Total U.S. oil output lags pre-pandemic highs seen just before prices plunged and forced explorers to slash output.