---
title: "US Oil & Gas Dashboard"
slug: us-oil-gas
type: data-index
sector: energy
canonical_url: https://deepstoryresearch.com/data/us-oil-gas
series: [crude_price, crude_production, natgas_price, spr_level, rig_count]
series_count: 5
data_point_count: 29
data_as_of: 2026-06
source_quality: curated_snapshot
tier: free
generated_at: 2026-08-11
---

# US Oil & Gas Dashboard
_Crude & gas prices, US production, the SPR and the rig count_

> Deepstory Research context file · **Free tier** · <https://deepstoryresearch.com/data/us-oil-gas>
> Self-contained AI briefing. Drop into an LLM window or RAG pipeline.

## AI research use contract

- Treat this file as source-grounded context, not a live database. Quote `source_ref` and `data_as_of` when using numbers.
- Separate `FACT`, `ESTIMATE`, `FORECAST`, `TARGET`, and `INFERENCE`. If a row basis is unclear, say it is unclear.
- Prefer T1/T2 sources for hard facts; use T3/T4 sources as context that should be checked before money, legal, medical, operational, or policy decisions.
- Keep answer structure clean: first say what the data says, then what you infer, then what would change the conclusion.

## Research upgrade checklist

- Separate spot prices, futures/forecasts, production, inventory, rig count, and geopolitical risk.
- Add OPEC+ supply decisions, LNG export demand, refinery utilization, and SPR refill policy as drivers.
- Track whether rig count changes reflect productivity, basin mix, or price incentives.
- Add a scenario prompt for Hormuz disruption vs record US supply.

## TL;DR — index summary

US oil & gas in 2026 is a story of record supply meeting geopolitical price risk: crude production set a new record in 2025 (off a 12.3 mb/d 2019 mark), Brent opened 2026 near $61/bbl before a Q1 spike, the SPR sits far below its ~727-million-barrel design capacity (lowest since 1983), and the oil-directed rig count was 433 in mid-June 2026. Supply is abundant; the Strait of Hormuz is the swing risk.

## What this index covers

Five series: crude (Brent) price by month, Henry Hub natural-gas price by year, US crude production by year, Strategic Petroleum Reserve levels, and the Baker Hughes rig count.

**Series in this index:**

- `crude_price` — Brent front-month price by month.
- `crude_production` — US field production of crude oil by year (mb/d).
- `natgas_price` — Henry Hub natural-gas spot, annual average.
- `spr_level` — Strategic Petroleum Reserve inventory vs design capacity.
- `rig_count` — Baker Hughes oil/gas-directed rig counts.

**Entities tracked:** EIA, DOE (SPR), Baker Hughes, OPEC+ (context), the Strait of Hormuz chokepoint.

## Key findings

- US crude production set a new record in 2025, up from a 12.3 mb/d prior record (2019) (eia-prod-record).
- Brent front-month began 2026 at ~$61/bbl, then rose sharply in Q1 (eia-q1-2026 / te-wti).
- Henry Hub natural gas averaged ~$2.03/MMBtu in 2020 — the low base for the gas series (eia-henryhub).
- The SPR sits well below its ~727-million-barrel design capacity — the lowest level since 1983 (doe-spr / cnn-spr).
- Oil-directed rigs numbered 433 on Jun 18 2026 (bakerhughes).

## Evidence basis map

The free tables above show `source_ref` but not the row-level `value_basis`. This section mirrors the visible rows only, so AI tools can separate observed values from estimates, forecasts, targets, and derived values.

| series | row | source_ref | value_basis |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| crude_price | period=Jan 2026; brent_usd=61 | eia-q1-2026 | EIA: Brent front-month began 2026 at $61/b |
| crude_price | period=Feb 2026; brent_usd=72 | eia-q1-2026 | EIA: Brent rose to $72/b in Feb on rising Middle East conflict risk |
| crude_price | period=Mar 2026; brent_usd=118 | eia-q1-2026 | EIA: Brent finished Q1 at $118/b; surpassed $100 on Mar 12 after the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz (military action Feb 28) |
| crude_price | period=Jun 2026; brent_usd=81; wti_usd=77.54 | te-wti | WTI $77.54 on Jun 22 2026 (Trading Economics); Brent ~$81 as a US–Iran deal to reopen Hormuz eased prices (Al Jazeera) |
| crude_production | year=2019; mb_d=12.3 | eia-prod-record | EIA: 2019 averaged 12.3 mb/d (prior US/global record) |
| crude_production | year=2020; mb_d=11.3 | eia-petroleum | EIA field production: 2020 averaged ~11.3 mb/d (COVID demand drop) |
| crude_production | year=2021; mb_d=11.3 | eia-petroleum | EIA field production: 2021 averaged ~11.3 mb/d |
| crude_production | year=2022; mb_d=11.9 | eia-petroleum | EIA field production: 2022 averaged ~11.9 mb/d |
| crude_production | year=2023; mb_d=12.9 | eia-prod-record | EIA: 2023 averaged 12.9 mb/d, a new US/global record |
| natgas_price | year=2020; usd_mmbtu=2.03 | eia-henryhub | EIA Henry Hub annual average 2020 = $2.03/MMBtu |
| natgas_price | year=2021; usd_mmbtu=3.89 | eia-henryhub | EIA Henry Hub annual average 2021 = $3.89/MMBtu |
| natgas_price | year=2022; usd_mmbtu=6.42 | eia-henryhub | EIA Henry Hub annual average 2022 = $6.42/MMBtu |
| natgas_price | year=2023; usd_mmbtu=2.54 | eia-henryhub | EIA Henry Hub annual average 2023 = $2.54/MMBtu |
| natgas_price | year=2024; usd_mmbtu=2.21 | eia-steo-jun2026 | EIA: 2024 Henry Hub averaged $2.21/MMBtu — the lowest inflation-adjusted annual price on record |
| spr_level | label=Design capacity; mb=727 | doe-spr | DOE: SPR design storage capacity ~727 million barrels |
| spr_level | label=Level, Jun 12 2026; mb=340.3 | eia-spr-weekly | EIA weekly: SPR held ~340.3 mb week ending Jun 12 2026 — lowest since 1983 (CNN) |
| spr_level | label=20% operational floor; mb=143 | cnn-spr | SPR must stay at least 20% full to remain operational (~143 mb) |
| rig_count | label=Oil-directed; rigs=433 | bakerhughes | Baker Hughes Jun 18 2026: 433 oil-directed rigs |
| rig_count | label=Gas-directed; rigs=122 | bakerhughes | Baker Hughes Jun 18 2026: 122 gas-directed rigs |
| rig_count | label=Miscellaneous; rigs=8 | bakerhughes | Baker Hughes Jun 18 2026: 8 miscellaneous rigs (US total 563) |

## The series (per-chart briefings)

### Crude (Brent) price — line
**Direct answer:** Brent front-month price by month.
**Time bracket:** monthly (2026)

| period | brent_usd | wti_usd | source_ref |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Jan 2026 | 61 |  | eia-q1-2026 |
| Feb 2026 | 72 |  | eia-q1-2026 |
| Mar 2026 | 118 |  | eia-q1-2026 |
| Jun 2026 | 81 | 77.54 | te-wti |

**Read:** A calm ~$61 open gave way to a Q1 spike on geopolitical risk.

### US crude production — line
**Direct answer:** US field production of crude oil by year (mb/d).
**Time bracket:** annual

| year | mb_d | source_ref |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2019 | 12.3 | eia-prod-record |
| 2020 | 11.3 | eia-petroleum |
| 2021 | 11.3 | eia-petroleum |
| 2022 | 11.9 | eia-petroleum |
| 2023 | 12.9 | eia-prod-record |

_+2 more rows on the live page and in the full working dataset._

**Read:** A secular climb to a 2025 record — the abundance side of the story.

### Henry Hub gas price — line
**Direct answer:** Henry Hub natural-gas spot, annual average.
**Time bracket:** annual

| year | usd_mmbtu | source_ref |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2020 | 2.03 | eia-henryhub |
| 2021 | 3.89 | eia-henryhub |
| 2022 | 6.42 | eia-henryhub |
| 2023 | 2.54 | eia-henryhub |
| 2024 | 2.21 | eia-steo-jun2026 |

_+2 more rows on the live page and in the full working dataset._

**Read:** Structurally cheap gas, rising with LNG-export pull.

### SPR level — bar
**Direct answer:** Strategic Petroleum Reserve inventory vs design capacity.
**Time bracket:** labelled points

| label | mb | source_ref |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Design capacity | 727 | doe-spr |
| Level, Jun 12 2026 | 340.3 | eia-spr-weekly |
| 20% operational floor | 143 | cnn-spr |

**Read:** Depleted vs its ~727 mb design capacity — thinner policy buffer.
**Caveat:** Lowest since 1983 per CNN reporting.

### Rig count — bar
**Direct answer:** Baker Hughes oil/gas-directed rig counts.
**Time bracket:** weekly snapshot

| label | rigs | source_ref |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Oil-directed | 433 | bakerhughes |
| Gas-directed | 122 | bakerhughes |
| Miscellaneous | 8 | bakerhughes |

**Read:** Rig count is the forward-supply tell — 433 oil-directed in mid-2026.

## Cross-series synthesis — why this matters

The five series describe a barbell: record domestic production and cheap gas (the abundance side) against a depleted SPR and a Hormuz-driven price spike (the fragility side). Abundant supply caps the downside for prices; a thin SPR and a single chokepoint cap how much policy can blunt a shock.

Rig count is the leading indicator that ties them together — it tells you whether the record-production trend continues into next year regardless of the spot-price noise in the crude series.

## Entities & relationships

| Entity | What they do | Key stat | Relationship |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| EIA | US energy statistics agency | Source for price, production, gas | Primary data for four of five series |
| DOE / SPR | Emergency crude stockpile | ~727 mb design capacity; lowest fill since 1983 | Policy buffer against supply shocks |
| Baker Hughes | Rig-count publisher | 433 oil-directed rigs (Jun 2026) | Forward-supply indicator |
| Strait of Hormuz | Chokepoint (~20% of seaborne oil) | The 2026 price-risk driver | Geopolitical swing factor for the crude series |

## Timeline of key events & decisions

- **2019** — US crude production hits 12.3 mb/d record → the prior benchmark the 2025 record beat
- **2025** — US crude production sets a new record → the abundance underpinning the whole index
- **2026-Q1** — Brent spikes off a ~$61 open → Hormuz/geopolitical risk overrides abundant supply
- **2026-06** — SPR at lowest since 1983 → thinner buffer against the next shock

## Cross-industry ripple

- **Inflation:** Crude and pump prices feed the energy component driving 2026 CPI (see us-inflation and us-pump-prices).
- **Airlines / logistics:** A Hormuz-driven crude spike raises jet fuel and freight costs. _(inference)_
- **Geopolitics:** A depleted SPR reduces the policy lever available in a Middle East supply disruption. _(inference)_

## Non-obvious reads (interpretation)

_This section is interpretation, not sourced fact — each item names the observation it is built on and a confidence level._

- **Observation:** Record production coincides with a Q1 price spike and a depleted SPR.
  **Read:** Price risk in 2026 is geopolitical, not supply-scarcity — so the crude series will track headlines (Hormuz) more than the production series. _(confidence: high)_

## Glossary / key terms

- **Brent / WTI** — The two crude benchmarks (international / US).
- **mb/d** — Million barrels per day — the production unit.
- **Henry Hub** — The US natural-gas benchmark pricing point.
- **SPR** — Strategic Petroleum Reserve — the US emergency crude stockpile.
- **Rig count** — Active drilling rigs (Baker Hughes) — a forward-supply signal.
- **Strait of Hormuz** — The Persian Gulf chokepoint carrying ~20% of seaborne oil.

## How to use this with AI

Paste this file into an LLM context window (or a RAG store) and ask cross-series questions. The tables carry a `source_ref` per row; the source registry below maps each ref to a named source and a trust tier.

### Suggested prompts (multi-series)

```text
Using crude_price, crude_production and spr_level, argue whether 2026 oil-price risk is supply-driven or geopolitical, citing the series.
```

```text
Connect this index to us-pump-prices and us-inflation to trace how a Hormuz spike reaches consumer prices.
```

```text
From the rig_count series, assess whether the 2025 production record is likely to hold into 2027.
```

## Sources & trust

| ref | source | trust tier | url |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| eia-q1-2026 | EIA — Today in Energy: Crude & product prices rose sharply in Q1 2026 | T1 · Government / regulator / central bank | https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=67424 |
| eia-steo-jun2026 | EIA — Short-Term Energy Outlook (June 2026) | T1 · Government / regulator / central bank | https://www.eia.gov/outlooks/steo/ |
| eia-henryhub | EIA — Henry Hub Natural Gas Spot Price (history) | T1 · Government / regulator / central bank | https://www.eia.gov/dnav/ng/hist/rngwhhdm.htm |
| eia-petroleum | EIA — Petroleum & Other Liquids: US field production of crude oil | T1 · Government / regulator / central bank | https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=pet&s=mcrfpus2&f=a |
| eia-prod-record | EIA — Today in Energy: US crude oil production set a new record in 2025 | T1 · Government / regulator / central bank | https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=67404 |
| bakerhughes | Baker Hughes — North America Rotary Rig Count | T2 · Primary filing / official body | https://rigcount.bakerhughes.com/na-rig-count |
| doe-spr | US Department of Energy — SPR Quick Facts | T1 · Government / regulator / central bank | https://www.energy.gov/hgeo/opr/spr-quick-facts |
| eia-spr-weekly | EIA — Weekly US Ending Stocks of Crude Oil in the SPR | T1 · Government / regulator / central bank | https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=WCSSTUS1&f=W |
| cnn-spr | CNN Business — US emergency oil stockpile tumbles to lowest since 1983 (June 2026) | T3 · Reputable press / research org / OWID | https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/15/business/spr-lowest-since-1983 |
| te-wti | Trading Economics — Crude Oil (WTI) | T3 · Reputable press / research org / OWID | https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/crude-oil |
| aljazeera-hormuz | Al Jazeera — Oil prices and Strait of Hormuz traffic (June 2026) | T3 · Reputable press / research org / OWID | https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2026/6/19/oil-prices-rise-as-lebanon-fighting-erupts-and-hormuz-traffic-still-slow |
| aaa | AAA — Gas Prices (national average) | T2 · Primary filing / official body | https://gasprices.aaa.com/ |
| eia-gasdiesel | EIA — Gasoline & Diesel Fuel Update | T1 · Government / regulator / central bank | https://www.eia.gov/petroleum/gasdiesel/ |
| eia-steo-jun2026 | EIA — Short-Term Energy Outlook (June 2026) | T1 · Government / regulator / central bank | https://www.eia.gov/outlooks/steo/ |

## Caveats & what this index cannot answer

- Forward crude prices (the series are historical/spot prints).
- OPEC+ quota decisions (context only, not a series).
- Estimates and forward targets are labelled in the working dataset; never read a labelled estimate or forecast as a settled figure.
- This is an observational data index, not investment, legal, or medical advice.

## Data freshness & methodology

- **Last updated:** 2026-08-11
- **Data as of:** 2026-06
- **What changed most recently:** June 2026: SPR at its lowest since 1983; oil-directed rig count 433; Brent elevated after the Q1 spike.

**Methodology (as seeded):**

> A consolidated US oil & gas data hub. Source-backed values are seeded for
> all seven charts: the 2026 Brent crude journey through the Strait of Hormuz
> shock, Henry Hub natural gas annual averages, US crude oil production, the
> Strategic Petroleum Reserve drawdown, the Baker Hughes rig count, and
> national pump prices for gasoline and diesel.
> 
> Every numeric point carries a sources[].ref and a value_basis. Crude and gas
> prices and production are from the EIA; the rig count is Baker Hughes; the
> SPR level is EIA weekly stocks with context from DOE and CNN; pump prices are
> the AAA national average (gasoline) and EIA on-highway price / STEO forecasts
> (diesel).
> 
> CAVEAT: the 2026 Henry Hub value ($3.34) and the diesel-related forecasts are
> EIA projections, labeled as forecasts. The crude chart shows Brent milestone
> points (not every month); the Jun point also carries the WTI spot ($77.54,
> Jun 22 2026). The gasoline point (Jun 18 2026) and diesel point (mid-May 2026)
> carry different dates, each labeled, as the latest cited value per fuel.
> Re-verified 2026-06-22.

---

_Free tier. The full row-level dataset and per-source detail live on the live page and in the working file. Canonical: <https://deepstoryresearch.com/data/us-oil-gas>. Deepstory Research · https://deepstoryresearch.com_