Energy Tomorrow Blog
Energy’s Benefits to Investors and Consumers
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Mark Green
Posted April 29, 2015
Rigzone: For every $1 that public pension funds allocated to oil and gas assets in 2005, investors saw a return of 130 percent in 2013, about double their returns on other investments, according to a new study from the American Petroleum Institute and Sonecon LLC.
“The lesson, frankly, from this analysis is that pension plans would be in better shape if they increased the share they invest in oil and gas,” said Robert Shapiro, a co-author of the report, said during a conference call with reporters.
Shapiro found that the funds invested an average of 4 percent of their assets in oil and gas, which yielded 8 percent of the returns. The study reviewed the returns of the two largest funds — those owned by public school employees and state workers in every case — for each of 17 states, which included California, Florida, New Mexico and West Virginia for the eight-year period from 2005 to 2013.
“All of these pension plans have been under serious economic stress since 2008. Thirty-five states have enacted changes that will change benefits,” Shaipro said, adding that when the plans’ returns are higher, there is less pressure on them to reduce benefits.
The Soundness of Investments in Oil and Natural Gas
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Mark Green
Posted April 28, 2015
New analysis of the performance of oil and natural gas stocks in public pension funds shows the importance of a healthy energy sector to the futures of millions of Americans – as well as the misguided nature of efforts to force institutions to end investments in oil and natural gas.
The first strengthens our country’s economy and makes more secure the future for a broad swath of people – starting with retired teachers, police officers and firefighters, among others – while the second most likely would do harm to a lot of regular Americans. ...
“In short, returns on state pension funds from investments in oil and natural gas companies provide strong earnings for public pension retirees, including America’s teachers, firefighters and police officers, according to the study,” said Kyle Isakower, API vice president of regulatory and economic policy, who briefed reporters during a conference call.
Blogger Conference Call - Industry Earnings and Public Pension Plan Ownership
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Jane Van Ryan
Posted April 29, 2011
ETR 130 - The Oil and Natural Gas Industry's Contribution to State Pension Plans
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Jane Van Ryan
Posted April 27, 2011