America's Energy Policy: Coming to Terms with Reality

There are no easy answers to America's energy challenges, but if there's any hope of finding anything resembling a solution, it surely begins with an honest assessment and discussion of the facts. And therein lies the problem: coming to terms with reality.

It's a simple task, really, although in a business as politically charged as energy nothing is as easy as it seems. Wednesday's affair in the U.S. Senate offered no evidence to the contrary. Consider a few quotes from Wednesday's Judiciary Committee hearing that heard testimony from executives of the country's largest oil companies:

Is there anybody here that has any concerns about what you are doing to this country, with the prices that you are charging and the profits that you are taking?

- Sen. Dick Durbin

Yet you rack up record profits, record profits, quarter after quarter after quarter, and apparently have no ethical compass about the price of gasoline.

- Sen. Diane Feinstein

Consumers are angry, and they have every right to be. You're making more money than ever. It doesn't seem fair, guys. It just doesn't seem fair.

- Sen. Herb Kohl

On Wednesday, there was also this intriguing colloquy between Sen. Patrick Leahy and two oil executives about their salaries. The Senator's point, as far as we can tell, was to alert the American public that high-level oil executives make a lot of money. That's not unusual, compared with many other industries. But oil, of course, is different.

And, this is a political year and politics is in high gear in Washington, perhaps more so than usual. The problem is that political grandstanding is as irrelevant as ever when it comes to intelligently discussing, much less solving America's energy problem.

It's all too easy to use publicly traded oil companies as scapegoats for the high price of oil and gasoline. But if this is a conspiracy, why aren't futures traders called to testify as well?

In fact, contradiction is everywhere when it comes to talking about energy in America. Here are a few examples:

On the one hand, some politicians are calling for lower gasoline prices. Meanwhile, others are complaining that America's "addiction" to foreign oil only seems to go up? News flash: the two are connected. Lower prices induce higher consumption, which necessarily leads to higher imports in a country with falling oil production.

Despite calls for raising supply, attempts at bringing new energy capacity on line are often attacked. A recent example is Delaware's successful effort at blocking BP's (BP) plan for building a new liquefied natural gas plant. The Supreme Court decision on New Jersey v. Delaware on March 31, 2008 comes at a time when politicians are complaining that energy companies aren't doing enough to increase supply.

Politicians charge that oil company profits are too high, at least as defined in absolute terms. But in relative terms, the profits are more or less middling. As CNNMoney.com recently pointed out, citing data from Thomson Baseline, the average net profit for the S&P Energy sector is 9.7%, slightly higher than the 8.5% for publicly traded companies generally, as per the S&P 500. In comparison, Microsoft's profit margins are a dizzying 28%, according to Yahoo Finance.

Nonetheless, everyone focuses on the absolute profit levels for oil companies, and certainly the dollar amounts are staggering. But the scale is necessary. Finding, pumping and shipping oil is a business that demands massive up-front investments that may, or may not pay off in the years, perhaps decades ahead. In the meantime, there's lots of expense.

Drilling for oil 10,000 feet under the ocean simply doesn't allow for small-scale operations. Yet this fact is conveniently overlooked. Criticizing the scale of oil company operations, and then asking the same companies to deliver more supply, is nothing if not contradictory. If you want the latter, you need the former.

There are many more examples we could cite that remind us that intelligent discussions about energy can't be assumed as the natural course of affairs. Granted, oil companies aren't saints and so we assume that all the usual imperfections that infect human activity in other industries, and government, apply in the energy patch.

The fact still remains that the supply and demand equation has changed for energy, thus the rise in prices. The idea that it's a conspiracy is ludicrous. Otherwise, one has to assume that the oil companies engineered the collapse in oil prices in the 1980s, and again in the late 1990s. If they were really in control of price, why allow such extremes on the downside?

The answer, of course, is that supply and demand are running the show. Not entirely, not absolutely, and not for each and every minute of the day. But generally, price trends are a function of supply and demand. Yes, the supply is manipulated in some parts of the world, but that tends to occur beyond these United States. But we digress.

When it comes to talking about oil companies, particularly Big Oil - publicly traded Big Oil, that is - reason seems to take a holiday, at least by the standards of discussion that usually holds for chatting about, say, cement manufacturing. Or even coal. When, an inquiring mind might wonder, will there be hearings on "excess profits" earned by coal companies? Don't hold your breath.

In fact, while we're dreaming up ideas for Senate hearings, here's a thought: let's talk more about boosting energy efficiency, which conceptually represents a synthetic equivalent of finding a new Saudi Arabia. Yes, some of that goes on, but it's a lot more fun to bash the usual suspects.

Indeed, the debate in Washington is hot and heavy when it comes to passing new taxes on oil companies to penalize their "high" profits of late. Perhaps that's warranted. But no one should expect that it will solve Joe Sixpack's problem of paying more at the pump. In fact, if Joe owns shares in the oil companies, either directly or through mutual funds, imposing punitive taxes may end up hurting the man on the street even more.

No matter, since oil habits die hard. Some of the thinking about Big Oil is a legacy of decades past, when the Seven Sisters prevailed. But the old days are gone. The publicly traded oil companies' power today pales by historical comparison. Yes, that's another inconvenient truth, but so be it.

The new Seven Sisters, as the Financial Times dubbed them last year, are: Saudi Aramco, Russia’s Gazprom, CNPC of China, NIOC of Iran, Venezuela’s PDVSA, Brazil’s Petrobras (PBR) and Petronas of Malaysia. Notably, all of the new seven are government-owned companies. Collectively, they hold one third of the world's oil and gas production and more than one-third of the world's oil and gas reserves, the Financial Times advises. In the grand scheme of today's energy markets, the publicly traded oil companies are bit players by comparison with the new Seven Sisters.

Yes, the old Seven Sisters have lost much of their clout when it comes to the price of crude. On the other hand, they're much easier to drag into Senate hearings than the new power brokers.

Comments

[Panskeptic:]

Well, gee, now we know Picerno's political preferences. And was he as exercised when a bunch of power companies all pulled their capacity offline simultaneously causing a spike in rates, and the Bush Justice Department forbade the states to investigate?

I find it equally risible when Washington bloviators parrot Ronald Reagan and Milton Friedman slogans that have proven just as untrue, irrelevant and off-the-wall. I love "the magic of the market" that gave us Enron, LTCM and Bear Stearns. But I guess we'll hear about that brainless silliness in Mr. Picerno's next post.

2008 May 23 08:07 AM

[Jimm:]

I didn't really see anything political in this article. It's pretty accurate.
If Panskeptic knew anything about how much an oil well in the North Sea costs, or the hoops oil companies have to jump through to build or even repair anything, he's be less skeptical. A 10% profit margin isn't unreasonable.
Watch 'em, don't hang 'em.

2008 May 23 08:16 AM

[Sandy the I...:]

Washington and their hearings would be funny if were a Hollywood movie and not something that affects the entire world. Refusing to expand energy, making ethanol the #1 alternative energy -- ethanol that is pushing inflation as badly as the price of energy -- rather than natural gas and wind -- scary.

But we all must remember that this is an election year. And getting reelected is much more important than the reality of our countery going to H.... in a Handbasket.

2008 May 23 08:46 AM

[John Armesto:]

Finally the Anerican people are seeing that the Democratic congress which is taking orders from politically correct fanatical environmental groups is at the crux of the problem. Thank God for elections this year.
I bet if you followed the money funding our continued congressional dependence on foreign oil you would find the source is OPEC.

2008 May 23 09:10 AM

[Edward Janeck:]

The US has huge inflation from oil and other places. I write about it today:
theinvestingspeculator...

2008 May 23 09:21 AM

[User 176170:]

Picerno is dead on. These congressional hearings have been going on since the 1970s energy "crises"--every time gasoline prices spike--and have produce nothing but hot air. If the public is so stupid not to see the contradiction between a senator trying to jawbone down gasoline prices while at the same time advocating and voting to subsidize higher priced alternatives, then we deserve to go to H...in a Handbasket. Ethanol is a farm program, not an energy program, and will never be more than a gasoline additive. It will always be more expensive than gasoline.

2008 May 23 09:24 AM

[dtg:]

When you read these articles you ask "who are the idiots that elect these moronic senators?".- Answer, Panskeptic...a typical liberal that can't stay on point when it comes to an argument. Bear Sterns?

2008 May 23 09:28 AM

[buyitcheap:]

User, you're right on - ironically we can convert vehicles to LNG for about $1k a car and that is substantially cheaper than gas, and we have a ton ofit- we'd cut of emissions by more than half from cars if we did that, while working on longer term solutions, like electric cars.

2008 May 23 09:29 AM

[Brian Pursley:]

According to Democrat Party Communists, 10% profit margins for Big Oil are too high but 33% tax profit margins for Big Government are too low.

2008 May 23 09:43 AM

[Mmarrkk:]

Remember a few months back when the Congressional elections were going on. We kept hearing about how poor Congress was doing under their then leadership (GOP) and how we needed to elect new leaders (Dem's). Well you guys did (can't blame me as I would never ever vote Dem again) and the Dems are now in full control of both houses of Congress. So, where is all that leadership? Where are all those solutions we were promised? Why aren't the Dem leaders doing something?? Have they passed anything that has come close to solving a problem?? Other than bills that just throw more money at problems that haven't been solved by the first trillion dollars already wasted?

Regardless of the letter behind the name, either R or D, they are all clueless fools in Congress and we are clueless fools because we keep electing them! And now, our president will be one of the clueless fools from Congress! Great work everyone. Keep those votes coming! Maybe there should be limits on voting...like a basic education or being a tax payer.

2008 May 23 10:16 AM

[mixter:]

The more "evil" profits the oil companies make, the more incentive there is for them to produce more oil. Also, others will invest where there is money to be made. For all of you "Dim-wit-O-crats", this is know as capitalism, or a free market economy!

More oil being produced will ultimately result in oil prices going down.

Duh!

2008 May 23 10:29 AM

[WayneS:]

Representative Maxine Waters, Democrat of California, let the cat out of the bag. Congress wants to emulate OPEC and nationalize US oil companies. As it is, our government is no more trustworthy than Chavez and dozens of other dictators. Now they want to steal my retirement money just as I retire.

2008 May 23 10:44 AM

[phillips49:]

It seems that we (Americans) are in a state of denial. Until we stop looking for the "great conspiracy" and admit there really is a fundamental problem, we won't start to solve the issues in front of us. We (Americans) aren't the only ones pay high prices. It's global!..global! There are those in the world who can afford it less than we can, but are having to pay the price. The blame/shame game will not solve the problem. That game is only smoke and mirrors and delays action that would fix the problem.
When supply and demand for a basic neccessity are roughly in balance, it doesn't take much tweaking to control price. OPEC is a business, not a charity folks!. They don't have to turn up the taps, just because we whine. They don't owe us any more than what we pay for. I actually felt bad for the guys that had to put up with the humiliation in front of Congress. The Congress thing was just for show. It was a feel good thing. It changes nothing. We really ought to listen to what those execs said about what we have placed off limits in our own country. It going to take everything we've got to get out of this mess. Oil, natural gas, wind, hydro, solar, nuclear, fuel efficient fleet, hybrids. All of the above. We've got the know how and the resources. Now, if we can just get the will. But until we admit there is a problem, we can not solve it.

2008 May 23 12:02 PM

[jai hanuman:]

there are two main reasons for the oil/commodity explosion:

1. too much demand. resources are finite (yes, sorry to tell you that). now get used to it. stop wasting them and use them wisely. that means smaller cars and public transport, too.

2. too much one way leverage in the futures markets. the commodity markets have finally figured out that growth trumps inflation in the Fed's dual mandate. Since the Fed will pump growth under any circumstance, inflation is bound to rise. The easiest way to profit from that is hard assets. Hence the one way tickets in the futures markets.
Another way of looking at this is that the Fed will not take away the punch bowl. That job will now be done by the commodity traders.

3. Too much money around with not enough productive investment to chase (a quaint idea anyway in Greenspan/Bernanke Fed whose main mandate has moved on to supporting investment bank bonuses).

2008 May 23 12:28 PM

[jai hanuman:]

1. too much demand.

2. too much loose money.

3. growth is far more important politically than inflation. corollary - shortage of natural resources, first leading to dramatic price rises, then political disturbances, then wars over resources.

1 and 2 are related, btw.

2008 May 23 12:31 PM

[Global Warm...:]

It really is about supply and demand. The politicians just don't get how badly they are hurting our economy. For example, did you know that spending $1 trillion in Iraq is destroying our economy. We could do better spending that money at home. But, we can't drill in ANWR! That's a financial loss of $1.4 trillion that goes to our 'friends' in OPEC. Part of the reason that oil prices are so high is because the value of the dollar is falling. That hurts everyone in the country, not just because gasoline is more expensive, but because the buying power of the dollar is falling. Food is more expensive.

Companies like Exxon are slowly going out of business because they can't replace their reserves as fast as they are depleting them. They produce 2.5 million barrels per day. Were do these people in congress expect us to buy our oil? Some of these people think the solution is a windfall profits tax! How much new oil is that going to produce? How much money do they expect to collect from the tax? I guess to be 'fair' you have to make everyone equally poor and miserable.

2008 May 23 12:33 PM

[surgcare:]

Excellent article which is right on . Panskeptic is a perfect example of the idiocy of the democratic left .A total and complete lack of the intellectual capacity to understand facts and analyse them appropriately . The price of oil and gas is going up because of the democrats and they are relying on this subterfuge to fool people like Panskeptic into keeping them in office which will cause even higher cost . People won't be satisfied until the oil companies are destroyed (just like the steel ,auto and pharmacueticals ) .If you think this is going to bring down the price of gas you're an #@&%*&.

2008 May 23 01:43 PM

[barnburner:]

My oh my, what an attack on poor Panskeptic who brought to light a couple of "inconvenient truths". Oh, poor Exxon, about to go out of business, poor babies-wish they would get around to cleaning up their mess of a decade ago in Alaska. And talking about That mess reminds me that we should trust these guys in ANWR-don't think so. Let me ask you right-wingers this: if the seven sisters are not making excess profits and paying CEOS too much money who, besides the oil producers (Canada, Mexico, Nigeria and 11% from OPEC) is and why is their bottom line so 'robust'? I see a lot of mini-mart/gas stations go out of business but never see an Exxon or BP go out of business.

2008 May 23 02:28 PM

[rbblum:]

Please clarify, is Mr. Picerno's article insinuating the environmentalist movement has been hoarding select sacred mushroom crops for the pleasures of the political class and for the benefit of unidentified lobbyists. . . or has the US Congress just been functioning in such a manner for the last generation?

2008 May 23 02:53 PM

[fran:]

until the electorate take seious THEIR responsibility[vote out the pandering fools, vote in some leadership], nothing much will change. if that lesson is not clearly noted, Lord help us.

as the "stockholders" of the nation, we'll get the "return" we demand and work for. demand/vote in a new effective board[legislature] and ceo.

WOULD YOU BUY STOCK IN A COMPANY RUN BY THE CURRENT CONGRESS AND THE CURRENT LIST OF CEO CANDIDATES???

it's your company America.


signed

Gerrymandering

2008 May 23 04:45 PM

[Lex Luz:]

Just as with the mortgage mess, there is more than enough responsibility for our energy problems to go around. People who screech that the "whacko environmentalists" or the "democratic left" or the "greedy oil companies" are the sole cause of our current ills are all equally moronic. WE ARE ALL TO BLAME, ALL OF US.

We can fix this problem if we confront it honestly. It's my opinion that we need to drill everywhere now, AND that we need to increase refining capacity as well as investing heavily in nuclear, wind, geothermal, solar, biomass, and other alternatives for electric generation.

More important than drilling everywhere, though, is recognizing that drilling for more oil doesn't solve anything - it merely pushes out the horizon of the end. Unless you are among those few who do not believe that oil is a finite resource, you must recognize that we will eventually use all of it (within economic limits; yes, I'm aware of those arguments). We must, must, MUST develop alternative fuels for transportation AND alternative infrastructures. These changes are going to demand culture change as well. That's not a left/right, positional argument, it's just what is.

The longer we scream and screech about partisan nonsense, the longer we remain paralyzed and the closer we get to total self-destruction. It's time to recognize that we have all contributed to the madness and that we can all work together to overcome it.

2008 May 23 04:45 PM

[billddrummer:]

Demonizing OPEC makes no sense, when the biggest supplier of foreign oil is....CANADA!!! Oh, Canada, how we love thee.

Anyway, the author is spot on about the limited impact publicly traded oil companies have on the global scene. The largest oil company in the US, Exxon/Mobil, is not among the top 10 in proven reserves. In fact, US oil companies control less than 10% of proven reserves worldwide. (Go to Harris Interactive for a survey. The answers may surprise you.)

Furthermore, less than 15% of our imported oil is supplied by the Persian Gulf countries. Most of their exports go to Europe, Asia and Africa.

Might as well nationalize the few oil companies that are left. Then let Congress try to figure out how to find new oil when the same Congress prevents drilling even exploratory holes in 'environmentally sensitive' regions of the US.

We're not going to change our habits. If you don't like the price of gasoline, stop driving your car. If you don't want to give up your car, shut up and pay it.

2008 May 23 04:48 PM

[FocusNFun:]

Good article. As for "left vs. right", I am a bit confused by the points brought by the "left" here.

I know US corporations and The Sever Sisters are making enormous profits. However, I believe such profits are not "excess". Demand has outstripped supply.

In the US, the left political argument is that such profits should be redistributed to society via taxes/transfer payments rather than investors may by popular.

However, I must ask barnburner and Panskeptic, is the US the only arena you seek to influence? (e.g. cut "reckless" US consumption) After all, fossil fuels are cheapest form of energy the world has. Most other governments and nations (e.g. BRIC) would rather grow than conserve. Now, that other nations' have the technology and scale to produce, they are buying natural resources.

The most efficienct was to grow is use/buy cheap(er) fossial fuels.

Do you propose the US conserve while others' grow?
Do you maintain that state owned energy companies are easier to regulate, faster at innovation, or better for society than US/Western corporations? That would be an interesting assertion .... The Social Benefit of Gazprom vs the "average" of (Enron, Exxon, Chevron, Shell, BP)...


So, what balance of US growth ("less consumption"?) vs. global growth you seek? At some point, do you expect to influence other governments & entities to conserve as well? (e.g. Seven Sisters, Gazprom, China Petroleum, Tata, Venezula or China's government)

If you expect to influence non-US entities, I would suggest you let the US economy and US companies like Chevron, Exxon, etc. grow. Unless our consumers and companies are more efficient, non-US politicians have little reason to listen to you otherwise.

2008 May 23 05:09 PM

[Bhakta:]

I appreciate this article which is pure reason, not emotional gibberish. The USA still enjoys the cheapest energy of all the so-called developed countries. And we cry like babies when the candy is taken from us. BIG OIL is not the fault here. China and India and Brazil and Russia and Thailand and Vietnam, and Cambodia are all on a huge growth boom. The MTV and CNN etc. have flooded the minds of billions with the dream of the American lifestyle , ie big cars, bigger houses, and expensive toys, what to speak of homo sex, free love, etc. You better get used to is becuase you are 300 Million, and they are at least ten times that.

2008 May 23 05:54 PM

[Lewis Whoke...:]

Using my computer I printed out address labels saying:
"Democrats Won't Let Us Drill in ANWR.
Defeat the Democrats, Defeat High Oil Prices"


I will keep them in my car and each time I fill up I will put a sticker on the gas pump.


If you support this and can get others to do so, we can have this message on EVERY gas pump by November.

Power to the People!

2008 May 23 07:18 PM

[Mr. Math:]

Dear Mr. Davis-

The "evil speculators" drive up the price of Oil & other commodities - like wheat. While they are doing this, the wheat farmers make real money, correct?

During this year's oil bubble, American oil producers are busy pulling marginal oil out of the ground, new production is being chased, and consumers are engaged in "permanent demand destruction".

Once the oil bubble pops, won't all those "evil speculators" be the ones who get wiped out?

And doesn't every barrel extracted in the U.S., and every whiff of domestic demand destruction lead to an improved balance of trade?

If you're right and the oil bubble is temporary market excess, why complain about these things?

2008 May 24 12:04 AM

[lntwo:]

Spot on article - not an expert on the oil industry, so I thank those who have some expertise/knowledge on this.
As for the left-right, good v. evil, vegetarian v. doritos thread -- i cant resist. I'm a bleeding heart liberal who learned a long time ago to vote my heart and invest with my brain. This country, people, politicians wanted the easy answers and voted accordingly - Carter was mocked when he drew the clear line in energy policy, morality and our trajectory as a nation. I own a Prius AND XOM, and when this current idiot was elected went 35% in with my retirement in FSESX - so please drill in ANWR, make the goooberment lower gas prices - i insist. While my Bush voting co-workers complain complain complain I'm raking it in with every increase - thanks suckers.

2008 May 24 01:06 AM

[ship shape ...:]

This is the best damn article I've ever read on this site. Finally someone, who took a step back and looked at the matter with a cool head.

2008 May 24 01:54 AM

[Merger Mania:]

I wait for wait anxiously for another round of brainless silliness of Mr. Picerno's next post.It seems that every time the gas prices go way up, the news media and big oil apologists such as Mr. Picerno start bleating the same old "supply and demand" line. There's plenty of oil to meet the demand! If the truth be known, the big oil companies and their speculating henchmen on Wall Street are responsible for these high oil prices.

2008 May 24 08:24 AM

[ship shape ...:]

Merger Mania

You are ignorant.

When we talk about oil prices we talk about Light Sweet crude. THE important inventory installation for that grade is Cushing, OK.

Last year at this time there were 27.4 million barrels this year there are 20.6 million barrels. So that is about a quarter less than last year. Considering that this years dollar doesn't buy last years dollar, I cannot see anything strange in the price of oil.

Your lack of information is just as unsettling as the lack of high quality crude.

2008 May 24 09:25 AM

[Ronmac:]

Merger mania, barnburner, and panskeptic, it is unbelievable that you believe the other posters are "big oil apologists". None of you have a single fact. Mini-marts go out of business, but the big oil companies don't. That is supposed to convince me? Plenty of oil to meet demand? Please go entertain yourselves elsewhere, these discussions are obviously way over your heads. Most of us here are here to try and understand the energy environment so we might make some money. So "feelings" and "if the truth be known" types of arguments are simply obfuscating reality.

2008 May 24 10:20 AM

[stacked up:]

PBR - The Best Of Breed ...
The stupid "herd" sold PBR last week as if they struck dirt ..
If Xon is $95, PBR should be $150 ..

2008 May 24 10:21 AM

[john s. gordon:]

there have been stories that the government of china is building coal-to-liquid fuels plants to mitigate their oil import problem. why doesn't the government of the usa do likewise? the houston oil corporations aren't going to do it, they like to keep prices high like they are.

2008 May 24 11:07 AM

[ship shape ...:]

Look at the price of coal, man!

2008 May 24 11:08 AM

[CaptBob:]

In 1980, the U.S. Government established the Synthetic Fuels Corporation to produce an alternative to imported fossil fuels.

That was right after the 1979 Gas Crisis and the Carter Administrations answer with price controls-which put lines of cars around the block from the only station in town with gas--remember that??

Glad we're rid of that dunce--and these other Rip Van Winkles awake 28 years later to call hearings---Here's a ?? how's their synthetic fuel Corp. doing after all that time???

2008 May 24 11:27 AM

[sbenard:]

Mr. Math--
Your math ain't so good! Wheat prices are down 41% from their highs -- and still falling! Wheat prices are below BOTH the 50-day and 200-day moving averages. So are sugar and many other commodities.
Meanwhile: Wheat storage in the U.S. is at the lowest point since 1948 -- that's World War II era, when the U.S. population was half of what it is today!
Speculative traders have NOTHING to do with that. These are supply and demand issues that MUST push prices higher!
I wrote about the commodity bubble myth on my blog this week:
globalcapital.blogspot.../
cheap-sugar-most-commo...

2008 May 24 11:52 AM

[FocusNFun:]

John S. Gordon,

Liquifaction plants are expensive (billions), take years to produce, and share similar CO2 problems with simply burning the coal

All that adds up to economic viability at around $60 to $65 / barrel.

In the past, when people have thought to build such a plant (remember it takes years to get going), it rusts during the years when oil producers drive the price below $60 / barrel. At the end of the day, oil is cheaper when suppliers make it so.

As an aside, South Africa has the worlds most advanced (operational) liquifaction plant. China's (Mogolia's) is alternitatively going forward at remarkable speed or on hold depending on the Chinese government's assessment of the future.

2008 May 24 05:46 PM

[TAWAU:]

How often does one read that “America does not have an energy policy”, and if this be so, it surely must be the time for politicians to earn their salaries, and to show some leader ship!
--- most of Europe runs on the equivalent of USD8 per gallon of petrol, as against the US’s USD4 per gallon, this = smaller cars, and better public transport (electric trains and trams).
--- Brazil runs on ethanol, but if this is considered a bad idea, how about electric or gas run cars? I understand America is awash in gas so why not produce it?
--- France generates 70% of its electricity from Nuclear Power plants, this = more Power Stations.
Come on --not difficult, and not rocket science!!

2008 May 24 09:12 PM

[jjason:]

Lots of misinformation in the article and in the comments.

First- OPEC is a monopoly. OPEC sets production limits and prices.

Second- Oil executives are among the highest paid executives in the world.

Third- We use a lot of oil to have fun, go to and from work and in throw-away products.

Fourth- The oil futures markets have allowed people to speculate in oil which helps drive up the price with artificial demand.

Fifth-The whole world is involved in one through four.

EVERYONE needs to be involved in the solution.
1. OPEC must be broken up by making it illegal.

2. US income tax rates for folks earning over $200,000 a year will have to go up. Don't tax the oil companies , tax the employees.

3. The federal tax on gasoline will have to go up. We need to teach US citizens how to conserve energy. There must be an energy policy whereby we produce more of our own energy.

4. We must stop speculation in oil and all other commodities.

5. Financial institutions need to be well managed by smarter, more honest people. There was a speculative bubble in the US housing market that has seriously hurt our financial system.

You see, the problems can be solved if you recognize what the problems are. And, sometimes, the problem is YOU.

2008 May 25 07:35 AM

[mjg1231:]

I like this one:

>EVERYONE needs to be involved in the solution.
>1. OPEC must be broken up by making it illegal.

How about if we all just go to our city councils and demand that OPEC be made illegal. Let's start in Berkeley or Palo Alto. Or, maybe the US Government can take them to The Hague. What if we argued our case for making OPEC illegal at the UN! Yea, either or all three of those ought to do it!

2008 May 25 02:53 PM

[Investor612:]

The article itself is spot on, some of the comments it inspired are not.
1. Panskeptic uses the exceptions to discredit the whole regarding the free market.
2. GlobalWarmingExaminer writes that "spending one trillion in Iraq is destroying our economy." I note that the US military estimates it has killed between 30 to 35 thousand foreign fighters in Iraq-people who have come from outside that country to attack US troops. Perhaps GlobalWarmingExaminer believes those jihadist nutjobs would be sitting around camel dung fires in the desert, holding hands, and singing "Kumbaya" if we abandoned Iraq. It's more logical to assume a great many of them would be attacking US, Western interests elsewhere. One wonders what that would cost in light of the huge drag on the economy and extra expense created by 9/11?
3.barnburner writes that Exxon hasn't cleaned up the mess from the Exxon Valdez spill (he ignores how much they've spent cleaning it up) and that these "idiots," referring to the oil industry, shouldn't be trusted in ANWR. One wonders why barnburner thinks shipping in oil from elsewhere is safer and that we regulate the oil industry so that it behaves responsibly in literally hundreds of other locations.
4. last we come to jjason, the man with all the answers. he wrotes that "OPEC must be broken up, making it illegal." Really? And just how does jjason propose to do that short of a military effort on the scale of WWII?

2008 May 25 03:25 PM

[MudEngineer:]

Most people really do not have a clue about how much the cost of finding and producing new oil fields has become. The drillship that I work on goes for $608,000 per day. The supply boats add nearly another $200,000 per day. Fuel to run the drilling rig runs another $100,000 per day. Third party experts cost another $150,000 per day. At over 1 million dollars per day, congress had better not add a "windfall profits tax" or there just will not be enough dollars to continue exploration for oil.

Completing the well that had a drilling cost of $100,000,000 will then cost another 50 to 100 million dollars. Then it will cost another half of a billion dollars (yeh, with a B) to build the production platform. Oh yeah, we will need another half billion dollars(again with a B) to build a subsea accumulation and transport pipeline to get the oil to shore which may now be as much as 200 miles away for the more recent exploration areas. After all this expense, is it too much for a company to ask for a 10% profit compared to Microsoft's 28%.

2008 May 25 04:36 PM

[surgcare:]

Barnburner Another socialist rant . You guys want to destroy anyone who does better than you and when this results in lost jobs or more expense ,you always want to blame anyone but yourself . Inconvient truth ,not likely .Pack of lies ,yes .

2008 May 25 05:15 PM

[phillips49:]

Perhaps Senator Leahy should bring Saudi Arabia before congress. ( not seriously). They pump 10 millions barrels per day at $130 per barrel. That's $5.0 million per hour. $830,000 per minute. Perhaps Prince Waleed who just had a $4.8 million diamond covered car built ,(his 38th car), would feel the pain of the Senators people.
I'm sure that the US government already got their fair share of taxes off of Exxon and all their employees including the execs whom the Senator tried to embarrass. Exxon is just an easy target because the are a $479 billion business and they are domestic. Increasing taxes on the oil companies won't fix the problem. We need to get free of foreign energy.

Here's where your gas money is really going, for anybody that really cares.

www.dancehallreggae.co...

2008 May 25 09:59 PM

[phillips49:]

Perhaps Senator Leahy should bring Saudi Arabia before congress. ( not seriously). They pump 10 millions barrels per day at $130 per barrel. That's $5.0 million per hour. $830,000 per minute. Perhaps Prince Waleed who just had a $4.8 million diamond covered car built ,(his 38th car), would feel the pain of the Senators people.
I'm sure that the US government already got their fair share of taxes off of Exxon and all their employees including the execs whom the Senator tried to embarrass. Exxon is just an easy target because the are a $479 billion business and they are domestic. Increasing taxes on the oil companies won't fix the problem. We need to get free of foreign energy.

Here's where your gas money is really going, for anybody that really cares.

www.dancehallreggae.co...

2008 May 25 09:59 PM

[seffieandcoco:]

We need to have a manhattan project to get fusion power online in the next decade. As soon as the producers hear that we mean science and business the price will collapse. Methinks that the Arabs are paying off the congress.

2008 May 25 10:11 PM

[Texbuz:]

TIME Magazine...date line Monday July 26,1943:...."Eastern A-card holders will probably have their gas allowances upped from one and a half to two or three gallons a week, to use as they please; Midwest motorist will probably be cut from four gallons to the same figure, thus sharing the shortage"

2008 May 26 12:51 AM

[Pretzel Logic:]

I just gotta say, I love the idea of making OPEC illegal. If only we had thought of this intelligent strategy during the Cold War, we could have just made the USSR illegal and the war would have been over!

I think making everything illegal is an Idea Whose Time Has Come. Since we're at it, I am humbly proposing a list of things I sincerely believe we should ALSO "make illegal":

-- Earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes

-- Volcanic eruptions (We should at least outlaw these in populated areas. And yet Congress does NOTHING.)

-- Radical Islamic Terrorists

-- Cockroaches

-- Crappy weather

-- "Lite" beer

-- The "Reverend" Al Sharpton

-- Those annoying commercials where you don't understand what the hell they're advertising until the very end when they show a company logo and say something completely irrelevant to what they're selling, such as, "Nike. Because chicken should be grilled, not fried."

-- That first poster. Pandemic, Pangea, Panasonic... whatever his name was.

-- Elvis impersonators

-- Democrats

I'm sure there are lots of other things we can make illegal if we only wish hard enough! Let's all focus on Democrats first. On three, everybody wish really hard. One... two...

2008 May 26 05:49 AM

[JOSEPH FOSTER:]

MAY 26, 2008 J. FOSTER USA-UK
PICERNO YOU ARE 100% CORRECT BRILLIANT ARTICLE.
AMERICANS WASTE OIL MORE THAN ANY POPULATION ON EARTH.
OIL IS HEADING TOWARDS $200 SUPPLY AND DEMAND
IS THE FACTOR.
BY YEAR END AMERICANS WILL BE PAYING $6.00 PER GALLON.
EUROPE NOW IN THE RANGE OF $10 TO $11 PER GALLON.
MESSAGE TO OUR POLOTICIAN IF YOU ARE ABLE TO WASTE 2 TRILLION DOLLARS ON A MISTAKEN WAR IN IRAQ HERE IS MY SUGGEATION TO REMEDY THE SITUATION.
1. POWER PLANTS IN THE USA SHOULD BE 95% NECULAR SIMILAR TO FRANCE.
2. SET UP A MANHATTAN PROGECT LIKE THAT USED TO DEVELOP THE NUKE BOMB ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MOST EFFICENT BATTERY TO POWER AUTO.
ONE SET WITH A RANGE OF 100 MILES SECOND SET FOR ANOTHER 100 MILES FOR SWITCHING PURPOSE YOU NOW HAVE A RANGE OF 200 MILES PER DAY.
OVERNIGHT THE BATTERIES ARE CHARGED FOR THE NEXT DAY DRIVING.
SOLAR AND WIND WILL NOT SOLVE THE ENERGY CRISIS.
WHEN MSFT AND CISCO PROFIT JUMPS BY 80% WILL THE SAME SENATORS CALL THE CEO FOR ENQUIRY OF COURSE NO.
A NEWL INVENTED GENERATOR MAY STRETCH YOUR BATTERY POWER.
THE ABOVE SOUND SIMPLE BUT THE POLOTICIAN DO NOT WANT TO HEAR SIMPLE ANSWERS.
BRING THE BEST SCIENTIST IN THE WORLD TO LOS ALMOS
AND WITHIN ONE YEAR A BREAK THROUGH WILL BE FOUND.

2008 May 26 09:24 AM

[phillips49:]

I wish it was as easy as a change in Administration and representation. Since the oil embargo though, 30 some odd years ago, there have been many changes in Administration and representation. Unfortunately though, none have had the foresight, leadership or the will to protect our national security, by assuring reasonable access to strategic resources. America was built on reasonably available energy. We exported our manufacturing strength and we exported our national wealth for imported energy. Our dollar is weak because we have exported money and imported all the value added, dirty stuff that we didn't want to be bothered with at home. The global concept of a faternity of nations, all getting along and cooperating in trade is great on paper, but it comes as a sacrifice to our own strength. Can we really have a world class life style, by selling each other hamburgers? Now, if we make any of our global suppliers mad , we are totally ........, well, you can fill in the blank.

2008 May 26 11:01 AM

[phillips49:]

It is not an exaggeration to state that we are at war! It is just not a coventional war with an overt bad guy. It is a subltle war for survival of the American way of life. Our future will depend on how well we do.

Our current strategy: Shoot, Ready, Aim will fail!

A war is won starting at the very top with:

Identification of a national goal or objective.

Securing majority support for the goal.

Placing our best generals in charge of securing the objectives.

The generals are given the latitude to develop the plan of attack and are not politically micro managed.

The required resources are identified.

The resources to fight the war are mobilized.

The attack begins and moves flexibly through many battles.

Then, the war is fought, one skirmish at a time, one battle at a time.

The war is won based on how good the plan was and how well it was supported and the winning of the majority of the battles.

2008 May 26 12:01 PM

[J. Henster:]

Name-calling doesn't work--calling someone left- or right-winged with regard to their opinion is just a way to short-circuit the thought process. Along those lines, I plotted Y2007 adj. cost per barrel vs. incremental oil above or below current supply since 2003 (US Energy Inf. service source) and found the neutral point at about $55/bbl. It's simplistic, but it seems plausible. The sensitivity of this relationship was about $29/MMBOPD--it means the USA could cut consumption by 5% or so and bring the price to a reasonable level. Since the USA already consumes per capita way over any other country, this should be doable (should have been done years ago, actually).

We know all sorts of monkey-business goes on, and should be prosecuted, or perhaps even regulated (i.e. speculation), but the underlying price-controller still seems to be supply and demand. Unless the US is ready to invade other countries to take over their oil resources to produce them as we see fit, it would seem our main leverage over price control is still either our own resource development (supply), or conservation and alternative energy (demand). It would seem other countries' decisions to leave it in the ground, produce it inefficiently, or even sell it at an exorbitant price by curtailing the supply is their decision to make, not ours. Comes down to this: do you want peace or war?

2008 May 27 12:00 AM

[Munger75:]

As long as the politico's avoid reality, the play is simple--stay long oil. The day I hear Diane Feinstein admit that there is a supply/demand imbalance is the day I go short oil.

2008 May 27 11:35 AM

[Itsonlymoney:]

We must assume that once a person reaches the US Senate they have above average intelligence, so why the idiotic posturing from both parties at the recent hearings?

I'm guessing they speak to their constituencies who they apparently think are simple minded or are paying them to avoid cutting to the chase. No politician wants to deliver bad news to the electorate. That is everyone's fault as we tend to elect candidates that tell us what we want to hear or in the alternative candidates we know the least about.

2008 May 27 01:45 PM

[HLMencken:]

"Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want and deserve to get it good and hard."

"Democracy is ... the worship of Jackals by Jackasses."

2008 May 27 08:05 PM

[Georgen:]

The politicians complaining the loudest about high prices are the same ones obstructing new exploration for energy. I am sick and tired of hearing these morons wax eloquent about wind, solar, conservation etc. while ignoring the fact that these are only going to be marginal factors for the next several decades. T. Boone Pickens wind farm project on the TX panhandle will take up 400,000 acres to generate power for 1 million homes. How much space can we devote to that?Nuclear? Nooo! Coal liquification? Nooo, too much CO2. LNG Terminals? Nooo, too ugly. Drill in ANWAR and continental shelves? No, but the Chinese are drilling in Cuban waters. They will be great stewards of the ocean environment.

2008 May 28 12:35 AM

[fool me twi...:]

The Senate hearings with Big Oil are almost as relevant as the steroids hearings.

The government's energy plan only includes getting re-elected in November. I hope their plan fails.

2008 May 28 03:49 PM

[Michael Fit...:]

The problem is American doesn't HAVE an energy policy.
Here is a good start:

seekingalpha.com/artic...

We better get on the stick very soon or are currency, stock & bond markets, and economy are going to be hosed.

2008 May 28 06:50 PM