Energy Today - April 21, 2011
Rayola Dougher
Posted April 21, 2011
Boston Herald: Spillover Effect Can't Be Less Drilling: Major oil companies have developed a joint fast-response capability for containing spills as well as a research team to produce a foolproof blowout preventer for industrywide use. In addition, the oil industry has created a new Center for Offshore Safety designed to ensure that audits are rigorous and best drilling practices are employed by all companies engaged in high-risk offshore production... Analysts predict that Obama's energy policies will lead to a further dramatic decrease in oil production on federal lands in the future. The agency estimates that oil production in federal lands and the Gulf of Mexico will fall by 15 percent in 2011 and will decline by 26 percent in 2012 from the 2010 production high. Although the Obama administration lifted the offshore drilling moratorium several months ago, the government has been slow to approve deepwater drilling permits and the regulatory environment remains unclear. As a result, drilling contractors have shifted their rigs from the Gulf to sites off the coasts of Brazil and West Africa. Wall Street Journal: Spill's Toll on Oil Output Grows Clearer: Offshore oil production, most of which comes from the Gulf, is expected to average 1.55 million barrels a day this year, down 13% from 2010, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Following the April 20, 2010, blast on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig operated by BP and the subsequent oil spill, the Obama administration stopped awarding permits for deep-water drilling until late February. The drilling suspension, along with a new, slower permitting process, will result in the loss this year of about 375,000 barrels of oil a day, according to energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie. That is roughly equivalent to one-third of the production in Libya that remains shut down because of political turmoil there.
Petroleum Economist: Let's Get Real About Oil Sands: The oil-sands industry is focused on: energy security and reliability; economic growth; and environmental performance. The goal is to ensure the oil sands are developed responsibly, through continuous improvement in environmental and social performance. And the oil sands' environmental performance has made demonstrable improvements, including a 39% reduction (since 1990) in greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions per barrel of oil produced; increased use of recycled or non-potable water; reduced surface disturbance; and development of game-changing technology for tailings-pond reclamation.
Additional Resources:
The Hill's E2 Wire: Top House Republican: 'Time to Get Back to Work' in the Gulf
The Foundry: Video: Obama's Anti-Drilling Agenda Endangers Gulf Coast Economy