Peak oil was most widely popularized by M. King Hubbert, a brilliant—and egotistic, by some accounts—geologist who worked for years at Shell Oil. In a 1956 paper, he predicted that U.S. oil production would peak, probably in the early 1970s, and then decline. It would resemble a bell curve.
Hereof, when did we hit peak oil?
In 1974, Hubbert predicted that peak oil would occur in 1995 "if current trends continue". Those predictions proved incorrect. However, a number of industry leaders and analysts believe that world oil production will peak between 2015 and 2030, with a significant chance that the peak will occur before 2020.
When was the peak of oil production?
Present range of predictions. There was (when?) a consensus between industry leaders and analysts that world oil production will peak between 2010 and 2030, with a significant chance that the peak will occur before 2020. Dates after 2030 were considered implausible by some.
How many barrels of oil are produced each year in the US?
US crude oil production peaked in 1970 at 9.64 million barrels (1,533,000 m3) per day. 2013 production was 7.44 million barrels (1,183,000 m3) per day of crude oil (not including natural gas liquids).