oil patch

American  

noun

Slang.

1. an area in which oil is produced.

2. the petroleum industry.

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Etymology

Origin of oil patch

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

As it happens, Blue Owl’s data-center project in Abilene is on the edge of the West Texas oil patch that was the epicenter of the fracking boom.

From The Wall Street Journal

As Canada looks to untangle itself economically from the US, the country's landlocked oil patch is eyeing new customers in Asia through a pipeline to the Pacific.

From BBC

The oil patch has also gone through repeated boom-and-bust cycles in the past half-century, BCA adds.

From Barron's

The solution to these challenges has been a mix of creative applications of technologies first developed in the oil patch and totally new ones specific to drilling for geothermal power, says Fervo Chief Executive Tim Latimer.

From The Wall Street Journal

Kern County, home to the state’s largest oil patch, has long been friendly to energy companies.

From Los Angeles Times