AUSTIN, TX — The Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) is opening a new oil and gas field office in Lubbock to serve energy activity in the northern section of the Permian Basin — the nation's top oil and gas producing region.

"The opening of our Lubbock office enables RRC staff to keep pace with the energy industry's growth in West Texas and the Permian Basin, and ultimately to ensure Texas oil and gas is produced safely and in compliance with our rules," said RRC's Executive Director Wei Wang.

Texas leads the nation in oil and gas production with the Permian Basin in West Texas ranking as the top energy production region nationwide. Additionally, the U.S. Geological Survey estimates the Permian Basin contains 66 billion barrels of oil, nearly 300 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 21 billion barrels of natural gas liquids in the Midland and Delaware Basins.

The Lubbock office oversees District 8A of the RRC's existing statewide oil and gas districts and will serve the following counties: Bailey, Borden, Cochran, Cottle, Crosby, Dawson, Dickens, Floyd, Gaines, Garza, Hale, Hockley, Kent, King, Lamb, Lubbock, Lynn, Motley, Scurry, Terry and Yoakum.