According to a March 29, 2026, report in OilPrice.com theft in the Permian Basin of Texas amounts to 1 to 2$ billion annually. The Permian Basin, source of benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude, reportedly holds 15 % of the global oil reserves. Oil theft is nothing new but recent high prices for oil have increased theft. Anything not bolted down like copper or tools at a well site will likely be stolen. This is a world-wide problem.

In the above USGS map the perimeter of the Permian Basin is shown as the heavy black line. The Permian Basin is up to 25,000 ft thick and is a sedimentary formation that dips to the eastward.

According to Bloomberg (paywall) producers are losing between $1 and $2 billion per year. Martin County Sheriff Randy Cozart estimates 500 barrels of crude oil are stolen each week. A common method of stealing the oil uses a vacuum truck siphon out the crude from tanks on the well site. Some thieves use a waste hauling truck which is normally present in the oil patch.

Naturally, the caped crusaders at the Texas Railroad Commission are none too pleased about the thefts. According to one source, a truckload of 180 barrels of crude was worth about $15,000. The stolen oil could go into the tanks of another producer or directly to the gathering facility for transfer into a pipeline.