Tag: energy independence

3 background articles on the energy revolution – – Energy boom may expand into Mexico, What energy crisis?, and Bakken in graphs

Bloomberg – North America to Drown in Oil as Mexico Ends Monopoly 

Potentially another game changer for world-wide energy – – the Mexican legislature has changed national law to allow foreign investors to own oil reserves. This will draw the major oil companies with their talent, equipment, funding, and infrastructure. Speculation is oil production from Mexico could double in a decade. 

Still some major obstacles, but the potential is huge. The Mexican government and her people could benefit tremendously. I really hope they handle this well, for their good and the good of everyone who uses energy.

Newsday – Remember the energy crisis? Fracking fixed it.

Notice that the constant stories of the “energy crisis” isn’t in the news anymore. If you were around in the ‘70s you remember long lines to buy gas on your assigned even or odd day. Crisis stories continued for years, through the entire Carter administration and beyond.

Continue reading “3 background articles on the energy revolution – – Energy boom may expand into Mexico, What energy crisis?, and Bakken in graphs”

5 charts that show the dramatic impact of the energy revolution

Carpe Diem has some great graphs that show how much the energy world has changed in the last five years – Five charts that help put “Saudi America’s” shale revolution into perspective.

1 – Weekly US crude oil production ’89 to ’13

Continue reading “5 charts that show the dramatic impact of the energy revolution”

And you thought I was being too optimistic – Study forecasts natural gas production in U.S. will increase for another 30 years before hitting plateau

The Wall Street Journal describes a new study which suggests Gas Boom Projected to Grow for Decades.

The study starts with detailed look at actual production in the Barnett Shale field. It concludes that production in the US is going to increase for decades. The article’ lede:

Continue reading “And you thought I was being too optimistic – Study forecasts natural gas production in U.S. will increase for another 30 years before hitting plateau”

We don’t have to prosper, California edition

Update:  This is part 12 of my Peak Oil series.)

An article in Business Insider suggests There Is A Shale Oil Field Under Santa Barbara Four-Times Bigger Than The Bakken.

The article cites without linking (and I don’t want to spend the time finding the source) an EIA analysis:

According to the EIA, the Monterey Formation, which covers an enormous chunk of Southern California and terminates near Santa Barbara, has 15.4 billion barrels of recoverable crude — four times as much as the Bakken formation in North Dakota.

Continue reading “We don’t have to prosper, California edition”

Yergin interview about the oil boom

There’s a great interview with Daniel Yergin in today’s Wall Street Journal:  Making Sense of the U.S. Oil Boom.

He puts the current boom into good perspective. During the last presidential election, we were talking about running out of oil. This time around, we are discussing how close the U.S. can get to energy independence.

He mentions the jobs impact:

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Energy boom isn’t limited to the U.S.

I’ve mentioned the potential to see huge increase in oil and gas production in the U.S. in several posts. Start looking here, here, and here.

It’s not just the U.S. that could see huge increases in production. Check out these articles, courtesy of Carpe Diem:

Reuters:  Exclusive: UK has vast shale gas reserves, geologists say

New technology from the U.S. (that means fracking) could make large volumes of shale gas off the coast of UK economically viable, pushing England to the top of reserves worldwide.

Here’s the potential: Continue reading “Energy boom isn’t limited to the U.S.”

“An Energy Primer”

Fantastic primer on energy in the U.S. and world:

Hard Facts – An Energy Primer from the Institute for Energy Research.

I’ve just started reading it.  Superb stuff.  The first few tidbits that  jump out at me:

Estimates that there is more recoverable oil in the U.S. than in Saudi Arabia:

The United States is home to the richest oil shale deposits in the world—estimates are there are about 1 trillion barrels of recoverable oil in U.S. oil shale deposits, nearly four times that of Saudi Arabia’s proved oil reserves.5

Vastly improved energy efficiency in the U.S. even with expansion in the per capita GDP:

• Energy use per person in the United States fell 12 percent between 1979 and 2010 from 359 million BTUs to 317 million BTUs per person.19

• Energy intensity—energy consumption per dollar of GDP—fell by 52 percent between 1973 and 2011.20

Are we running out of oil and gas we know about and can get to at economical price?

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Putting the Bakken and Eagle Ford shale fields into perspective

Let’s talk round numbers.  Half a million barrels of oil a day from each of two new fields, Bakken and Eagle Ford.  Minimal production just a few years ago. I’m making a totally wild guess that production will double in the next year or less.

There’s an old game of If such-and-such was its own country, it would be the Xth largest in the world. For example, if California were its own country, only six European countries would be larger in population.

Let’s play that game with just the Bakken and Eagle Ford fields.

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Oil boom on the horizon in Kansas? Also, a hint of the lucrative economics of fracking.

Walter Russell Mead points to an article here that says prospectors are spreading out across southern Kansas looking for oil. They are in the Mississippi Lime formation, roughly between Tulsa and Wichita and spreading to the west.

Two really cool comments in Mr. Mead’s post, What is the Matter with Kansas? If You Like Oil, Nothing.

First, here is a hint at the economics involved:

Continue reading “Oil boom on the horizon in Kansas? Also, a hint of the lucrative economics of fracking.”

U.S. energy independence on the horizon? Maybe soon.

An article from NPR, Is U.S. Energy Independence Finally Within Reach?, explains the impact of all the new drilling could be making theU.S. energy independent soon.

The article says:

Energy self-sufficiency is now in sight,” says energy economist Phil Verleger. He believes that within a decade, the U.S. will no longer need to import crude oil and will be a natural gas exporter

Continue reading “U.S. energy independence on the horizon? Maybe soon.”