StateImpact on OETA: Oklahoma Oil Hub Overflowing With U.S. Crude

• Joe Wertz
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  Joe Wertz was a reporter and managing editor for StateImpact Oklahoma from 2011-2019. He reported on energy and environment issues for national NPR audiences and other national outlets. He previously worked as a managing editor, assistant editor and staff reporter at several major Oklahoma newspapers and studied journalism at the University of Central Oklahoma.

Low oil prices have led the U.S. energy industry to stockpile crude instead of selling it at discount rates. A lot of that hoarding is happening at a major oil hub in Cushing, Okla., which is holding record amounts of crude could fill up — for the first time ever.

The Cushing oil hub is enormous: It has room for 20 percent of the country’s inventory of commercial crude, and some of the storage tanks are so large they could hold a 747 jumbo jet. If you’ve never been to Cushing, you can get a visual overview with a television piece StateImpact produced in collaboration with videographer Sonya Barrett for OETA’s Oklahoma News Report.