US energy boom creates record surplus

Jul 08, 2024

Production from renewables & shale oil soars

By Farms.com

The US is experiencing a surge in energy production, driven by growth in both shale oil and renewable sources like wind and solar. This has resulted in the nation's highest ever energy surplus, exceeding consumption by a significant margin.

While the US isn't completely energy independent due to reliance on specific crude imports, it has achieved a remarkable level of self-sufficiency. This trend began under the Trump administration with the shale oil boom and continued under the current administration.

The surplus reached a record 9 quadrillion British thermal units in 2023, with total energy production reaching nearly 103 quadrillion BTU. However, the future of this surplus is uncertain.

Tax incentives could accelerate renewable energy adoption, while investor pressure might slow shale oil growth. Additionally, rising demand from data centers fueled by the AI boom could erode the surplus.

The future of US energy policy and how the nation will meet its growing needs remains an important topic for discussion.

Video: Cleaning Sheep Barns & Setting Up Chutes

Indoor sheep farming in winter at pre-lambing time requires that, at Ewetopia Farms, we need to clean out the barns and manure in order to keep the sheep pens clean, dry and fresh for the pregnant ewes to stay healthy while indoors in confinement. In today’s vlog, we put fresh bedding into all of the barns and we remove manure from the first groups of ewes due to lamb so that they are all ready for lambs being born in the next few days. Also, in preparation for lambing, we moved one of the sorting chutes to the Coveralls with the replacement ewe lambs. This allows us to do sorting and vaccines more easily with them while the barnyard is snow covered and hard to move sheep safely around in. Additionally, it frees up space for the second groups of pregnant ewes where the chute was initially.