The U.S. Code §613A(d) describes an independent producer as an operator with no more than $5 million in annual retail oil and gas sales and who does not refine more than an average of 75,000 barrels of crude oil per day. Approximately 9,000 independent oil and natural gas producers operate across 33 states and offshore, employing an average of 12 people each.
Independent producers operate 95 percent of the nation’s oil and natural gas wells, and are responsible for 85 percent of US oil production and 90 percent of natural gas production onshore. Independents can be small family companies or publicly traded companies. These companies efforts account for 4 percent of the United States’ Gross Domestic Product and they reinvest billions of dollars back into the American economy to discover and to produce more energy in the most cost-efficient ways. IPAA members play a critical role in the nation’s overall economic vitality and energy security. Learn more here.