In recent history, oil has been viewed as one of the most valuable commodities for the vast majority of countries around the world. The importing and exporting of oil has allowed many of them to generate substantial revenue for their governments year over year.

On the other hand, oil production has also been the source of controversy, debate, conflict and even war over the years. There also seems to be quite a lot of speculation, rumors and false allegations that are surfacing and circulating about many of these countries and the way that their oil reserves are being used.

However, there’s also a bit of confusion that’s involved when it comes to identifying the countries that produce and export the most oil daily in comparison to the ones that produce the least. Studies that have been conducted and confirmed in recent years by the US Energy Information Administration have been able to clear up many of the misunderstandings by officially identifying the highest volume oil producing countries in the world.

The following report consists of the top ten countries that featured on this list.

1. Russia

At the very top of the list of the highest volume oil producing countries in the world is the country of Russia. There are over 9.5 million barrels that are being produced throughout this vast country on a daily basis. Even though they rank in the top spot of oil production by country, they still fall short of matching Saudi Arabia when it comes to daily oil exportation with only a little over 5.4 million barrels each day.

2. Saudi Arabia

8.3 million barrels of oil are daily produced within the country of Saudi Arabia. In recent years, there have been quite a few controversial claims and allegations that have been made about this country allegedly exaggerating their crude oil reserves by nearly 40%. However, there still has not been any official confirmation that actually proves this assumption.

3. United States

Throughout the United States, a daily amount of over 5.4 million barrels of oil is being produced. It is no surprise, then, why the US is featured in the #3 spot on this list. However, it is quite shocking that they are not even featured on the Top 20 list of oil exporters worldwide. Even though the United States ranks fairly high on this list in comparison to many other countries, there is still a difference of almost 3 million barrels between the US and Saudi Arabia.

4. Iran

Producing over 4 million barrels each day is what allowed Iran to achieve the fourth spot on the list of the highest volume oil producing countries worldwide. This is not the only thing that has stirred up a substantial amount of controversy within this country over the years, because their nuclear program has also been a major source of international concern as well. Even though they have made claims that this program only uses low-enriched uranium in order to generate electricity, this explanation has still left many other questions unanswered.

5. China

They may fail in comparison when it comes to oil exporting but China makes the Top Five section of this list with a massive amount of over 3.8 million barrels that are successfully being produced each day. Sadly, there was a recent explosion that erupted within one of their pipelines which led to the country’s largest oil spill in history. The ripple effect of this tragedy actually created a high level of ecological damage that many researchers have confirmed might not be completely resolved for at least another decade.

6. Mexico

While they daily export over 1.3 million barrels, Mexico has made it to this list by maintaining a count of over 2.6 million barrels that are being produced each day. Unfortunately, tragedy struck Mexico in recent years as well when an explosion occurred within one of their major oil pipelines within San Martin Texmelucan. This disaster ended up taking the lives of almost 30 people, including 13 young children.

7. Canada

It might be a surprise to many people, but the country of Canada is also featured on this Top 10 list. This is primarily because of the 2.6 million barrels daily that this country regularly produces. In recent years, the Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, has formally urged the United States to officially approve the creation of an oil pipeline that would flow from the US Gulf Coast directly into Canada. It truly did not take very long for this request to stir up a lot of controversial debates and conflicts within both countries.

8. United Arab Emirates

Within the United Arab Emirates, there are over 2.4 million barrels that are being produced. This country is also known for exporting over 2 million barrels as well. In recent years, there have been quite a few different studies and reports that have confirmed that this country has been thoroughly researching more efficient sources of energy in order to promote green living. Some of their planned strategies include proven methods that are powered exclusively by solar energy.

9. Iraq

Over 2.4 million barrels are produced and 1.9 million are exported by Iraq on a daily basis. When it comes to meeting an international demand for oil, there are many reports that seem to conclude that this country will become more and more significant in the years to come. It was reported back in 2006 that a substantial amount of Iran’s government budget (nearly 40%) was from their natural gas and oil revenues. In 2007, their foreign exchange reserves were able to earn them over $70 billion; over 80% of this amount was generated by their crude oil exports.

10. Kuwait

Reports have confirmed that the country of Kuwait has a daily production rate of over 2.4 million barrels. This may seem like a microscopic number when compared to some of the top countries featured on this list, but it is still much more than many other countries are producing at the same rate. Since they also export over 1.4 million of these barrels, Kuwait is the final country listed currently as the highest volume oil producing countries around