China recently surpassed the US as the world’s largest net oil importer, as the US produces more and consumes less while Chinese demand steadily increases. US net oil imports have fallen from a peak of 13 million barrels per day in October 2006 to under 6 mmb/d in December 2012, according to a Citi research note issued February 28, titled “Milestones Toward US Energy Independence – Alert: US net Oil Imports Plummet to Second Place Behind China.”

“Meanwhile, since China flipped from a net exporter to a net importer of oil in 1993, its net oil imports have risen steadily to 6.3 mmb/d in January 2013, just under last May’s peak,” the Citi analysts said in the note.

Additional eye poppers from the research include:

• Net US crude imports fell to 7.5 mmb/d, a low not seen since 1997, as crude production rose to 7.03 mmb/d, up over 1.1 mmb/d y/y.
• University of Michigan reports that US fuel economy reached a high of 24.5 mpg in January 2013, up 4.4 mpg (22%) from October 2007. Over the same timeframe, gasoline demand fell from 9.25 mmb/d in December 2007 to 8.38 mmb/d in December 2012.
• In 2013, some ~1.4 mmb/d of new pipeline capacity debottlenecks Cushing and the Permian Basin, connecting to the USGC; 2014 adds another ~1 mmb/d.
• Rail receiving capacity in the PADD I region could reach ~900-k b/d this year, allowing Bakken crude to eat away at the ~500-k b/d of light sweet imports on the US East Coast too.
• China is building some 450,000 b/d of refinery capacity in 2013 and ~1 mm b/d per year from 2014-18.