Bomey, N. (2019, September 16). Why the U.S. is less dependent than ever on Saudi oil. Retrieved from https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/09/16/saudi-arabia-oil-attac
k/2341141001/ 

Date: 16 September 2019

Although U.S. oil prices have undoubtedly increased after the Saudi attacks, the U.S. isn’t as dependent on Saudi oil as it was before. In 2018, the United States produced more oil that it imported, producing 18% of the world’s oil compared to Saudi Arabia’s 12%. Because we are more dependent on our own oil production than we are on Saudi Arabia’s, oil prices were able to remain relatively stable. The amount of oil imported from Saudi Arabia in 2018 was an all-time low since tracking began in 1993. However, the U.S. still faced consequences from the attack because of the distribution of the imported oil: California imported the most oil from Saudi Arabia.

I think it’s great that the U.S. wasn’t completely dependent on Saudi Arabian oil at the time of the attacks. If we were, the consequences would have been severe. However, in terms of the environment, I don’t like how countries like the U.S. and Saudi Arabia produce so much oil daily instead of turning to renewable energy sources. Becoming less dependent on Saudi Arabia is a win economically, but doesn’t improve things environmentally. However, I do believe that importing less from Saudi Arabia is a good step to take.