Oil Reserves Drop for 1st Time in 5 Years

[Bluebear]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. proven crude oil reserves fell last year for the first time in five years, as energy companies replaced just over half the oil they took out of the ground, the U.S. government said on Wednesday.

The latest data show the United States will remain addicted to foreign oil imports for the foreseeable future. Critics have also complained that oil companies are not spending enough of their record profits to develop more supplies.

Oil companies replaced only 58 percent of the U.S. crude they drilled with new reserves in 2003, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Total U.S. crude oil reserves stood at 21.891 billion barrels at end of 2003, down 3.5 percent from the year before, the Energy Department's analytical arm said.

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