The Ever-Changing Sources Of US Crude Oil Imports

Imports of crude oil are an important component of energy used in the United States, accounting for about two-thirds of total U.S. crude oil supply in 2007. The United States increased its crude oil imports by 16 percent between 1998 and 2005, when we reached a peak average daily import level of 10.13 million barrels per day (MMbbl/d). U.S. crude oil imports have declined slightly in subsequent years (Figure 1), as has overall petroleum demand. Imports in 2008 for the five months ending in May are down by 3 percent from the same period in 2007. In fact, imports for the month of May 2008 alone were over six percent below May 2007.

Since 1998, the United States has diversified its supply by increasing the number of countries from which it receives crude oil imports. We received crude oil imports from 45 countries in 2007, up from 39 countries in 1998. Still, six countries continue to supply about 75 percent of total U.S. imported crude oil: Canada, Iraq, Mexico, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela. Total imports from the six have remained fairly constant over the past ten years, though their individual shares of U.S. imports have changed (Figure 2).

Saudi Arabia was the largest source of U.S. crude imports from 1998 through 2003, ranging from 1.4 to 1.7 MMbbl/d; between 16 and 18 percent of total U.S. imports on an annual basis. However, imports from Saudi Arabia fell off in 2004 and remained below 15 percent (1.5 MMbbl/d) through 2007. Crude oil imports from Venezuela have also trended down over the last decade and, more recently, imports from Mexico, historically between 14.4 and 16.4 percent of U.S. imports, declined to 14 percent or 1.4 MMbbl/d in 2007.

Imports from Canada and Nigeria have increased to compensate for these reductions. Canada represented 14.5 percent (1.3 MMbbl/d) of U.S. imported crude oil in 1998, rising to 18.8 percent (1.89 MMbbl/d) in 2007. As a result, Canada became the leading country of origin for U.S. crude oil imports since 2004. The share of oil imports from Nigeria picked up in 2004, and remained relatively constant through 2007 at just below 11% (about 1.1 MMbbl/d), almost overtaking Venezuela as the fourth ranked source for U.S. imported crude oil. While not as large as the other source countries in the top six, Iraq has consistently supplied about five percent (0.5 MMbbl/d) of U.S. crude oil imports since 2002 and is on track to provide more oil to the U.S. in 2008.

These past trends show up in the data for the first 5 months of 2008 (Table 1). So far this year, the U.S. total volume of imported crude oil has dropped, along with declining demand, in response to higher prices and a slowing economy. As a result, the countries that have increased supplies to the U.S. are responsible for a greater share of U.S. imported crude oil.

Canada continues to be the leading county of origin for crude oil imported into the United States. Canadian oil represented 19 percent (1.89 MMbbl/d) of U.S. monthly crude imports for the five months ending May 2008. Saudi Arabia ranked second, with imports from that country averaging 16 percent (1.53 MMbbl/d) over the same period.

Mexico supplied 1.47 MMbbl/d of crude oil to the U.S. on average during the first five months of 2007; however, largely due to the maturity and subsequent production declines in the Cantarell field, the volume of crude imported from Mexico during the first five months of 2008 has averaged only 1.21 MMbbl/d, a drop of 18 percent.

Crude oil imports from Venezuela during the first five months of 2008 are down 10 percent from the same period in 2007. As a result, Venezuela’s share of total U.S. imports declined to 10.2 percent this year through May. Venezuelan declines may stem from increased exports to other countries or from lagging domestic production, or some combination of these factors. Regardless, the reduction set the stage for Nigeria to overtake Venezuela as the fourth largest source of supply for imported crude oil on average so far this year.

Nigerian supply constituted 10.8 percent of the total U.S. imports for the five months ending May 2008. Imports from Nigeria averaged 1.05 MMbbl/d between January and May 2008, essentially equal to that for the same five months ending May 2007. Although Iraqi supplies averaged only 0.67 MMbbl/d between January and May 2008, this level represented a 47 percent increase over the five months ending May 2007. Iraqi supplies represented almost 7 percent of the total U.S. crude oil imports for the five months ending May 2008.

In summary, over the past decade, the U.S. has increased the total number of countries from which it receives crude oil imports, but six countries continue to supply approximately 75 percent of imported crude oil used in domestic refineries. The overall share of crude oil from the Americas is declining slightly, as losses from Venezuela and Mexico have not been replaced entirely by Canada. Increased supplies from Nigeria and Iraq, as well as sources that have traditionally represented smaller supply shares such as Algeria, Russia, and Brazil, have helped to meet U.S. import needs.