GILLETTE, Wyo. — The natural gas and oil industry supported more than 58,000 jobs and contributed nearly $11.9 billion toward Wyoming’s economy in 2021, according to an analysis that industry groups released today.
The Petroleum Association of Wyoming and American Petroleum Institute today published an analysis of the economic contributions of America’s natural gas and oil industry.
The American Petroleum Institute commissioned the study. PricewaterhouseCoopers, a professional services company, prepared it based on the latest government data available.
The study said that in 2021, the industry supported 58,780 total jobs (20,340 direct and 38,440 indirect) or 14.4% of Wyoming’s total employment; generated an additional 1.9 jobs elsewhere in Wyoming’s economy per direct job in the state’s natural gas and oil industry; provided $5.7 billion in labor income ($3.6 billion direct and $2.1 billion indirect) to Wyoming, or 23.3% of the state’s total; and contributed $11.9 billion to Wyoming’s total gross domestic product ($8.3 billion direct and $3.5 billion indirect), or 28.6% of the state’s total.
Only Oklahoma had a higher total employment impact as a share of state employment that year, the report said. The oil and natural gas industry contributed more than 10% of state employment in 2021 in Oklahoma, Wyoming, Texas, Louisiana and North Dakota. The states have large oil and natural gas deposits and produce much of the country’s domestic energy supply. The District of Columbia, New York and Maryland, on the other hand, have the smallest shares of economic activity attributable to the oil and natural gas industry.
“It is well known across the state that the natural gas and oil industry is Wyoming’s primary economic driver,” Petroleum Association of Wyoming President Pete Obermueller said in the release. “This latest report reveals just how true that is — boosting every facet of the state’s economy from agriculture to tourism to manufacturing. Natural gas and oil are literally powering Wyoming’s potential.”
At the national level in 2021, the natural gas and oil industry supported 10.8 million total jobs, or 5.4% of total U.S. employment; generated 3.7 jobs elsewhere in the U.S. economy per direct job in the natural gas and oil industry; produced $909 billion in labor income, or 6.4% of the U.S. national labor income; and supported nearly $1.8 trillion in U.S. gross domestic product, or 7.6% of the national total.
American Petroleum Institute President and CEO Mike Sommers said in the release that the natural gas and oil workforce supports nearly 11 million careers throughout the energy supply chain and that the analysis suggests that the nation needs policies and regulations, such as permitting reform and a final five-year plan for offshore oil and gas leasing, that promote investment and development in the industry.
“America’s economic outlook is brighter when we are leading the world in energy production,” he said.
The study was conducted to measure the updated impact of the industry on Wyoming’s economy and across the nation, Petroleum Association of Wyoming Vice President and Director of Communications Ryan McConnaughey said.
“PAW works with API to make sure we have the most up-to-date information available,” he said.
The employment estimates for the oil and natural gas industry include both full-time and part-time employees as well as self-employed business owners, McConnaughey said. More information on how the information was calculated can be found in Appendix D of the full report, here.
