Photo caption: From left to right, Sen. Scott Hutchinson (R-Butler/Clarion/Forest/Venango/Warren); David Clark, president of the PGCC; Bill Henderson, Vice President, PIPP; Jacob Faber, Energy Citizen advocate; Dan Weaver, president and Executive Director of PIOGA; and Rep. R. Lee James (R-Butler/Venango) are recognizing National Petroleum Day and Pennsylvania’s rich history as a top energy-producing state at the Drake Well Museum in Titusville, PA.

Not pictured: Rep. Martin Causer, (R-Cameron/McKean/Potter), Rep. Kathy Rapp (R-Warren/Crawford/Forest) and API PA Executive Director Stephanie Catarino Wissman.

TITUSVILLE, PA – August 25, 2022 – In conjunction with National Petroleum Day on August 27, the American Petroleum Institute Pennsylvania (API PA), the Pennsylvania Grade Crude Coalition (PGCC), the Pennsylvania Independent Petroleum Producers (PIPP) and the Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association (PIOGA) were joined by several state legislators at the Drake Well Museum to celebrate the pivotal role that Pennsylvania, the birthplace of the modern oil and gas industry, has played for over 160 years.

“I am proud to represent the birthplace of the petroleum industry in the Pennsylvania State Senate,” Senator Scott Hutchinson (R-Butler/Clarion/Forest/Venango/Warren) said. “What occurred here in 1859 helped catapult the United States onto the world stage as an industrial giant. It helped reshape society for the better by transforming manufacturing and transportation processes, and by making life improving products and inventions accessible to the average person.”

In 1859, Edwin L. Drake drilled the first U.S. commercial oil well in Titusville, a small town in Crawford County, Pennsylvania. The world-famous Drake Well demonstrated practical oil recovery by applying salt-well drilling techniques, including the use of the derrick, and invented the modern method of driving iron pipe.

“Day in and day out, our oil and gas producers help power our cars, heat our homes and supply materials for many of the products we use in our day-to-day lives,” said Rep. Martin Causer (R-Cameron/McKean/Potter), chairman of the House Majority Policy Committee and a member of the Pennsylvania Grade Crude Development Advisory Council. “This industry has been a vital part of our nation’s history, but it is an equally vital part of our future. We owe a debt of gratitude to these hardworking men and women, and we owe them our support for the important work they do.”

The U.S., which is the largest producer of petroleum in the world, produces an average of 11.9 million barrels per day.

“The success of the energy industry is vital to America,” said Rep. R. Lee James (R-Butler/Venango). “It is appropriate to celebrate this date in history, and to remember that we enjoy energy security in our country.”

“Petroleum has historically been the largest major energy source for total annual U.S. energy consumption,” said state Rep. Kathy Rapp (R-Warren/Crawford/Forest). “Try going the day without using any petroleum products – from car gas to plastic and more – to see the impact petroleum has had on our lives. To say life without petroleum would be different than we know it, would be quite the understatement. It would be a daily struggle.”

In Pennsylvania, over 100,000 active conventional wells produce about 14,000 barrels per day, generating $1.7 billion for the economy.

“Pennsylvania continues to be a pioneer in the oil and gas industry, revolutionizing energy development and advancing technologies to foster a lower-carbon future,” said API PA Executive Director Stephanie Catarino Wissman. “Our state has shown the rest of the country what can happen when we embrace and encourage the development of homegrown energy. To ensure Pennsylvania remains a global energy leader, however, we need commonsense, solutions-focused policies, predictable regulations and efficient permitting at the state and federal level.”

“We are blessed,” said David Clark, President of the PGCC. “Our product, Pennsylvania Grade Crude Oil and Natural Gas provides 6000 products once it is refined for all Pennsylvanians. And simultaneously the 29 counties in Pa. where these wells are located consistently maintain the highest stream water quality in the state.”

Dan Weaver, president and executive director of PIOGA, agreed, adding, “Petroleum is indispensable as a fuel and an irreplaceable feedstock for thousands of products we use daily.”

“During Col. Drake’s time, it provided the energy to safely illuminate the streets at night, while also saving the world’s whale population,” said Weaver. “Drake would not recognize the value oil provides us today, with the automobile industry providing just one example of the product’s technological advances. Light-weight plastics, derived from petroleum, account for 50 percent of a cars’ total volume, and only 10 percent of a vehicle’s weight, in addition to providing the fuel that is needed for most passenger, commercial and long-haul vehicles. The importance of oil in modern and industrial technologies is a far-cry from the days of Col. Drake’s streetlights and showcases the world-changing attributes of petroleum.”

“It is important to recognize the critical role petroleum plays in our lives,” Bill Henderson, vice president of PIPP, said. “From the products we use, to the jobs it supports, and the energy that powers our lives. We are happy to recognize this day and the people that make this industry what it is.”

API Pennsylvania is a division of API, which represents all segments of America’s natural gas and oil industry supporting more than 11 million U.S. jobs and is backed by a growing grassroots movement of millions of Americans. Our nearly 600 members produce, process and distribute the majority of the nation’s energy, and participate in API Energy Excellence®, which is accelerating environmental and safety progress by fostering new technologies and transparent reporting. API was formed in 1919 as a standards-setting organization and has developed more than 800 standards to enhance operational and environmental safety, efficiency and sustainability.

The Pennsylvania Grade Crude Oil Coalition (PGCC) is a nonprofit trade organization that represents conventional oil and gas producers in Pennsylvania.  PGCC’s members consist entirely of small businesses, many of which are single-employee entities or individual operators.  PGCC’s mission is to advance local economies and engage in regulatory processes that affect conventional oil and gas development.  PGCC’s members reside and operate in all of western Pennsylvania.  PGCC members are appointed to and sit upon the Pennsylvania Grade Crude Oil Development Advisory Council (CDAC).

The Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association (PIOGA) represents nearly 375 members, including oil and natural gas producers, drilling contractors, service companies, manufacturers, distributors, professional firms and consultants, pipelines, end users, royalty owners, and others with interests in the success of Pennsylvania’s oil and gas industry. PIOGA advocates for the responsible growth of Pennsylvania’s oil and natural gas industry by promoting an environment favorable to the success of the exploration and production, the transportation and the downstream end users of these energy resources.

Pennsylvania Independent Petroleum Producers (PIPP) is a nonprofit organization that maintains the economic feasibility of independent oil production through the influencing of current and future oil and gas regulations with the Commonwealth.

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