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mindmetoo
Joined: 02 Feb 2004
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 Posted: Thu May 04, 2006 5:09 pm Post subject: |
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| Octavius Hite wrote: |
The only solution to the "Exxon Factor" is to nationalize the oil industry. I like nationalization on one hand because it ensures that governments get a fair and decent cut for their natural resources. However it also has a downside, an example can be found in Venezuala. Gas is about 12 cents a gallon US which is good for the economic develpoment of a very poor country but it also allows for great waste. If you go into the streets of Caracas the air is so polluted you can barely breath because all the outdoor vendors use gas generators and everyone drives old dirty motorcycles or big SUV's.
So I don't see the US nationalizing the oil industry anytime soon. |
If you think about it, has high oil really destroyed the world economy so far? Unlike the oil shock of the '70s which sent the world into half a decade of stagflation, for the most part, the world economies have shrugged off high oil. We can look at the upside: Americans are driving less, taking alternative envirofriendly tech seriously, and not buying SUVs. |
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4 months left
Joined: 07 Feb 2003
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| Posted: Thu May 04, 2006 5:40 pm Post subject: |
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| mindmetoo wrote: |
| Wrench wrote: |
| After working in the oild industry in Canada for two years some of you guys have such dumb ass posts. Canada will out produce more OPEC countries very shortly and its estimated that Canada has more oil then the entire middle east put together. I just hope our politicians make a good use of this oil surplus revenues and invest in long term economic growth projects. |
Well, Canada has a lot of oil if you're talking oil sands. The figure I've seen is "almost as much as Saudi Arabia" not "more than the middle east put together." If you've got a link supporting that, I'd love to see it. It currently costs the Saudis about, what, $2 to extract a barrel of oil? Tar sands run about $50-$55 a bbl? I imagine in future it will get cheaper to extract the oil but right now it's only of value to us if oil remains high.
Of course with George Bush screwing everything up in Iraq, and China/India growing, I can't see the price falling anytime in the next decade. |
On an interview on 60 minutes a few months ago, Shell Canada president said that he estimates the oil sands to have a Trillion barrels of oil and possibly 3 or 4 trillion (can't remember which he said and I'm not searching for a link, you can find it if you look)
The problem with oil sands is that the sand needs to be heated to a high temperature to extract the oil. The cost is around $30 per barrel to extract the oil. There is also environmental concerns extracting the oil from the sand.
Suncor leads the way in this area along with UTS Energy. Put your cash in oil, gas and the services stocks and you won't have to worry about what the price of gas is. |
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mindmetoo
Joined: 02 Feb 2004
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| Posted: Fri May 05, 2006 5:44 am Post subject: |
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| 4 months left wrote: |
On an interview on 60 minutes a few months ago, Shell Canada president said that he estimates the oil sands to have a Trillion barrels of oil and possibly 3 or 4 trillion (can't remember which he said and I'm not searching for a link, you can find it if you look) |
| Quote: |
The U.S. government said Thursday Canada holds the world's second-largest oil reserves, taking into account Alberta oil sands previously considered too expensive to develop. |
http://www.rense.com/general37/petrol.htm
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| Second only to the Saudi Arabia reserves, Alberta's oil sands deposits were described by Time Magazine as "Canada's greatest buried energy treasure," and "could satisfy the world's demand for petroleum for the next century." |
http://www.energy.gov.ab.ca/89.asp |
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Hanson
Joined: 20 Oct 2004
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| Posted: Fri May 05, 2006 9:40 pm Post subject: |
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Just reading "Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight", (by Thom Hartmann) a very comprehensive book about how we are using up a finite resource - oil. Once the oil is gone (the author estimates that it will be gone in 35 years or so), there will be no reproducing it.
He also shows how the research being done on alternative sources of energy is more expensive than the cost of oil today. Once the cost of oil goes through the roof (and it will), then and only then will alternatives be looked at seriously.
Itaewonguy said that the theory that we're running out of oil is BS - but I disagree. The reserves we have today are finite. It's like a bank account that you draw on but never put money into. Sooner or later, the money in that bank account will dry up.
Therefore, powerful countries are vying for the oil that's left. Wars will be (and are) fought over this precious resource. America's positioning in the Middle East is directly related to oil. Anyone who claims otherwise is clearly kidding him/herself.
Oil IS directly related to everything we produce. Look around you right now. Everything you see around you (computers, tables, buildings, paper, ...) is either directly or indirectly produced thanks to oil. All our manufacturing capabilities are built on oil. Without it, production would grind to a halt, and cause chaos never-before-seen.
Bottom line: Oil is getting more expensive as its reserves get smaller. Who is making all this money? Look no further than the gov'ts and companies that control its production. In "The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight", Hartmann points out that of the top 10 companies/countries that have the most money (aka power), 4 of them are oil companies. |
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Hollywoodaction
Joined: 02 Jul 2004
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| Posted: Fri May 05, 2006 9:52 pm Post subject: |
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| Even if gas goes to 5$ a gallon in the US, it's still cheaper than in Korea and most European countries. Nobody but Americans (and to some point Canadians) complain about the surging cost of oil because they drive gas guzzlers. |
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mindmetoo
Joined: 02 Feb 2004
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| Posted: Sun May 07, 2006 12:26 am Post subject: |
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| Hollywoodaction wrote: |
| Even if gas goes to 5$ a gallon in the US, it's still cheaper than in Korea and most European countries. Nobody but Americans (and to some point Canadians) complain about the surging cost of oil because they drive gas guzzlers. |
What's even more bizarre Canadians are paying a lot more for gas but, unlike Americans, aren't buying more fuel efficient cars. They're buying record numbers of SUVs, the opposite trend of the USA. |
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Hollywoodaction
Joined: 02 Jul 2004
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| Posted: Sun May 07, 2006 4:10 pm Post subject: |
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| mindmetoo wrote: |
| Hollywoodaction wrote: |
| Even if gas goes to 5$ a gallon in the US, it's still cheaper than in Korea and most European countries. Nobody but Americans (and to some point Canadians) complain about the surging cost of oil because they drive gas guzzlers. |
What's even more bizarre Canadians are paying a lot more for gas but, unlike Americans, aren't buying more fuel efficient cars. They're buying record numbers of SUVs, the opposite trend of the USA. |
Well, you know that they argue that it's for driving in the snow (it takes one try for most people to realize that driving in 4x4 should be reserved for going up steep hills and moving the car when it's stuck). |
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