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John Hoffmeister sez we can produce more oil than ever if we wanted to.  Here are some facts:

1970: we produced 9.6 million barrels of oil per day.
2010: oil production had dropped to 5.5 million per day.

We have in effect lost around 43% of total production.

The world is watching China.  China is expected to increase its demand for oil from 9 million barrels per day to 15 million per day by 2015.  As you saw in the above video, Japan will be demanding more oil from Saudi, Malaysia and other oil producing nations.  Those demands will cut into the amount of oil we can buy from those same countries.  So what is happening is that oil speculators are worried that there wont be enough oil in the future.  Thus, prices go up.

Also the EPA regulates standards of production differently around the nation.  Mark knows more about this than I, but I think refineries are required to make different types of fuel available for different sections of the country.  Some is based on weather, etc.  Much is based on politicians writing rules that restrict oil companies.  (So California may require different gasoline be made than Alabama).  Hoffmeister said there are currently 40-50 different standards the EPA has imposed.  He thinks it should be reduced to maybe 5 or 6 standards at most.0

But the fact is that we have more oil than Saudi Arabia right now.  We should increase our oil production from 5.5 to 10 million barrels per day.  This would double our production, and decrease our demand on countries like Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.  It should also raise something like $20 billion dollars in royalties to the govt (which could go off to pay the deficit) AND.... best of all imo, create about 3 million new, HIGHER PAYING jobs!

If we did this, jobs would go up and the price of gas should fall.

So why we arent doing this?

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Because tUSA still believes the lie that it would take 20 years to see a benefit....I wish I knew where that rumor started.
Because states with buttloads of oil are run by special interests that lie about the oil and gas industry (see Sierra Club in Cali.).
Because the average individual still thinks that all we need oil for is gas for our vehicles.
Because that old stigma of the oil industry automatically equaling a dirty industry still stands.

I could keep going, and going, and going if you would like, but bottom line is that the average US citizen is just plain ignorant of the subject which I still find funny considering that modern civilization is not possible without the hydrocarbon molecule. Tell them they can't have television, movies, computers or music without it and they might listen.

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Originally Posted by Dennis Young:


But the fact is that we have more oil than Saudi Arabia right now.  We should increase our oil production from 5.5 to 10 million barrels per day.  

I'd sure like to see his sources for this statement.  Sounds rather exaggerated.

Something else that will likely lead to an increase in Petrol prices in the next several years is that the majority of Petroleum Geologists (the people who find the petroleum reservoirs) are ether near or past the age of retirement and the oil companies have been having a very hard time finding replacements.  A shortage of Petroleum Geologists will lead to a decline in discoveries on new plays and as such a reduction in supply couples with an increase in demand.  Its strange, the oil companies offer us high pay (I had a class mate get their masters and instantly get a job with a smaller company making over 90K/yr), however most of us pick other, considerably lower paying fields.

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those numbers are widely known, just never reported. to save time, just look up 1970 u.s. oil production. the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, etc. links back it up. here's a chart. imports up, production now. and thanks to new discoveries, it's now claimed that we have more oil than saudi arabia. not only the saudi arabia of nat. gas, but also the saudi arabia of oil.

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AND oil prices are down right now, because for the past 3 months people have been driving less. which is what obama and his energy secretary want. this is the reason they want to have gas prices "necessarily skyrocket" to around 7$ per gallon, like in europe. and have said as much on the record.

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Like I said, after looking at some resources from AAPG and the USGS I haven't been able to find any scientific information suggesting that our oil reserves are near that size (quite the opposite).  "Widely known but not reported" doesn't cut it.

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Originally Posted by Bryant Platt:
Like I said, after looking at some resources from AAPG and the USGS I haven't been able to find any scientific information suggesting that our oil reserves are near that size (quite the opposite).  "Widely known but not reported" doesn't cut it.

near what size? are you saying we didn't produce 9.6 million barrels in 1970?

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dude, just check out this page. it has several stories from reputable media outlets, with links to the original source of each one. and instead of oil reserves, i should have said recoverable oil. this paragraph pretty much sums it up.


America is awash in fossil-fuel energy sources with almost 30 percent of the world’s coal and 80 percent of the world’s oil shale – which contains an estimated three times the recoverable oil reserves of Saudi Arabia. Canada, with its oil sands, has the world’s third-highest oil reserves, after the United States and Saudi Arabia. New technologies that enable low-cost natural gas production from shale mean that many countries, including the United States, will have gas for centuries at current production rates.

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Originally Posted by Dødherre Mørktre:

Originally Posted by Bryant Platt:
Like I said, after looking at some resources from AAPG and the USGS I haven't been able to find any scientific information suggesting that our oil reserves are near that size (quite the opposite).  "Widely known but not reported" doesn't cut it.

near what size? are you saying we didn't produce 9.6 million barrels in 1970?

I'm not criticizing the report on our historical production, but rather the projections for how much oil we have left in the United States.

What link?  I don't see any links.

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Originally Posted by Bryant Platt:
Like I said, after looking at some resources from AAPG and the USGS I haven't been able to find any scientific information suggesting that our oil reserves are near that size (quite the opposite).  "Widely known but not reported" doesn't cut it.

Well for one we already know that there is more oil off he coast of Point Conception than there is at Prudhoe Bay, but the state won't allow us to pipe it onto land therefore directional drilling can't happen in federal waters.....even though the facilities to handle the product have already been built.....by me I might add ;-P

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Originally Posted by Mark Simmons:

Originally Posted by Bryant Platt:
Like I said, after looking at some resources from AAPG and the USGS I haven't been able to find any scientific information suggesting that our oil reserves are near that size (quite the opposite).  "Widely known but not reported" doesn't cut it.

Well for one we already know that there is more oil off he coast of Point Conception than there is at Prudhoe Bay, but the state won't allow us to pipe it onto land therefore directional drilling can't happen in federal waters.....even though the facilities to handle the product have already been built.....by me I might add ;-P

Ah, now I get who you are.  I've been trying to figure out whos who from the old group.

What exactly is going on with the Point Conception?  From the geologic maps it would appear that that area (both on land and out to sea) is riddled with thrust faults, how does one design both rigs and pipelines to mitigate the risk of failure due to earth quake?

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Originally Posted by Mark Simmons:
Because tUSA still believes the lie that it would take 20 years to see a benefit....I wish I knew where that rumor started.
Because states with buttloads of oil are run by special interests that lie about the oil and gas industry (see Sierra Club in Cali.).
Because the average individual still thinks that all we need oil for is gas for our vehicles.
Because that old stigma of the oil industry automatically equaling a dirty industry still stands.

I could keep going, and going, and going if you would like, but bottom line is that the average US citizen is just plain ignorant of the subject which I still find funny considering that modern civilization is not possible without the hydrocarbon molecule. Tell them they can't have television, movies, computers or music without it and they might listen.

Sadly, thats true.  The average American thinks the political process means they jsut go to the polls every few years and the rest will take care of itself.  They arent engaged like we are in this group.  Most have never even written their senator or Congressperson.

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Originally Posted by Bryant Platt:


Ah, now I get who you are.  I've been trying to figure out whos who from the old group.

What exactly is going on with the Point Conception?  From the geologic maps it would appear that that area (both on land and out to sea) is riddled with thrust faults, how does one design both rigs and pipelines to mitigate the risk of failure due to earth quake?

Lol!  Yeah, I figured out Marco when I saw his pics of the oil rigs in his profile.     

I dunno about citing sources.  I dont have any sources as to how much oil we have specifically.  I have heard we have more oil than Saudi many times though and so when the former Shell oil exec said that, I didnt bat an eye.  I just assumed it is true.  

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Originally Posted by Dødherre Mørktre:
AND oil prices are down right now, because for the past 3 months people have been driving less. which is what obama and his energy secretary want. this is the reason they want to have gas prices "necessarily skyrocket" to around 7$ per gallon, like in europe. and have said as much on the record.

I suspect thats what is going on too.  Obama has pretty much admitted his plan would force energy prices up.  And its likely he wants to create a situation where the people will demand other sources of energy and get us off oil.  

I'm not against moving toward other sources of energy.  But to do so in such a drastic manner hurts poor people like myself.  Especially when you live in a small town and industry and jobs are miles away.  Most folks here have to commute.  And there are no facilities in place here that service electric automobiles.  No train service either.  What about us?

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Originally Posted by Bryant Platt:

What link?  I don't see any links.

dammit, i didn't post the link. praise jesus, i found it!

http://askmarion.wordpress.com/2011/05/12/the-truth-for-once-about-americas-domestic-oil-reserves-resources/