The unbelievable has just happened: the U.S. government has projected that we will become a net energy exporter this year, in 2017. The eight cases considered in the Energy Information Administration (EIA) Annual Energy Outlook 2017 (AEO2017), released last week, present updated projections for U.S. energy markets incorporating different assumptions that reflect market, technology, resource, and policy uncertainties that affect energy markets.  The AEO2017 reports that the United States becomes a net energy exporter in most of these cases as petroleum liquid imports fall and natural gas exports rise.  Exports are highest and grow throughout the projection period, in the High Oil and Gas Resource and Technology case, because favorable geology and technological developments result in the production of oil and natural gas at lower costs. Other key findings include: Energy consumption is consistent across all AEO cases, bounded by the High and Low Economic...(Read Full Post)