Reserves of oil and natural gas in the United States shot higher last year, according to government data released on Monday. These have set records that reveal the extent to which a decade-long drilling boom has transformed the energy landscape. Proven reserves of natural gas rose by 985 billion cubic meters, or 10%, to a record high of 10.9 trillion cubic meters in 2014, while oil reserves rose 3.4 billion barrels, or 9%, to 39.9 billion barrels, the highest since 1972, the US Energy Information Administration said in a statement, Reuters reported. The EIA describes proven reserves as oil and gas that can be extracted using current technology and under today’s economic conditions. The increases, which were the sixth in a row, were driven by prolific production from shale plays that, through hydraulic fracturing, have produced vast amounts of fuel, creating a market glut and causing steep price drops. Production of oil and natural gas increased in 2014, the EIA said. Production of crude oil and lease condensate increased by about 17%, from 7.4 to 8.7 million barrels per day. Gas output increased from 2.06 billion to 2.1 billion cubic meters per day.
