BP Thinks the US Will Be Energy Independent by 2035

In recent months, the US energy sector has seen a surge in production, which has led to a drop in prices. That drop has facilitated a boom in the manufacturing and other job markets, which in turn has helped bring down the unemployment rate. The news just gets better, as British Petroleum (BP) has predicted a good outlook for the American energy market in its most recent report.

In January 2014, BP released its Energy Outlook 2035 report, which uses statistics and analyses to predict what will happen to various energy markets through the year 2035. The analysis of the US energy market predicts that the country will achieve full energy independence by 2035. This is due in large part to the recent uptick in natural gas production from new technologies like hydraulic fracturing. Fracking, as it is more commonly called, has allowed previously unreachable gas pockets to be mined cheaply, with the cheaper cost being passed to manufacturers and consumers as energy savings.

The report also predicts that by 2035, there will be a 75 percent drop in oil imports due to energy independence. The US energy sector will also produce so much natural gas and oil that it will begin exporting some of it to other countries. Some economists feel that that an increase in exports will send energy prices soaring in the US, while others feel that it would be a boon to the economy overall and help strengthen the country's trade relations with several other countries. In addition, the increased usage of natural gas over oil would mean a 6 percent reduction in carbon emissions, which is good news for the environment.

The predicted US energy surplus is also good news because it strengthens the country's position in regards to China. For the last forty years, China has been a growing superpower on the global stage, with many economists predicting it would eventually overtake the US as the largest economic power in the world. With China facing several problems, including an aging population and credit problems, it may not be quite the powerhouse of the future that everyone thinks. The US energy boom is bringing a lot of jobs back to the US from China and other countries, leaving China no choice but to invest in North American energy production to regain its slipping financial foothold.

The January BP report was nothing but good news for the US energy market, with the company's chief economists predicting energy autonomy for the country by 2035. This could mean good things for manufacturing, the economy, and the environment. Even though 2035 is still a long way off, recent surges in natural gas production point to BP's predictions coming true.

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