Brazil: "Considered to be the most prolific basin in Brazil, the Campos Basin is responsible for more than 85% of Brazil’s total reserves and 77% of its current production. The Campos Basin lies primarily offshore and most of its reserves are located in deepwaters." Libya: "EXXONMOBIL Corporation said recently that it had commenced drilling of the first of three deepwater exploration wells off the coast of Libya, ramping up activities in the oil-rich nation by the world's largest publicly traded oil company... The deepwater exploration marks the beginning of a new era for the North African nation."
An independent driller in 2003: "I have been a fan of deep water for a long time and I think the future in the oil business is deep water. About 1996, we started looking for an area in the world that was deep water where you could use FPSOs (Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading vessels). ... West Africa was not as nearly as far along as Mexico or Brazil and the companies hadn't really started drilling in deep water. There had been a couple of deep-water wells drilled in Angola and maybe one or two in Nigeria, but other than that, deep water in Africa was very virginal. ... We're going to find big oil. We probably have under our acreage, alone, over 10 billion barrels, recoverable. The United States has 22 billion barrels."
Memo to Right Wing Spin Machine: take ownership for the mess you made with regulatory capture and failure. It's all yours, baby.
12 comments:
Genetic mutations in sea life, may be mutations in us too. Continuous fires along the coastal areas fueled by oil from the unplugged leak, leaking for years with no end in sight. US population shifts away from the costal areas into the interior for safety, food, water, and shelter away from the fires and the toxic fumes. And the mutants. Sounds like a science fiction movie.
I have been following the oil blogging and I agree with much of what you are saying. Here is what I would love to debate and discuss...it is a shared ocean. If we don't drill here and they drill there, where does that leave us. Where do you go with that logic. I don't want to see any deep water drilling, but the reality of the situation haunts me. With the shift in oil power, comes a shift in economic power. Are we ready for this. I think the truest answer lies in pouring bucket loads of money into R and D on drilling while at the same time amping up other R and D and production in other areas. We may ween ourselves off oil (and we should), but as we do, other countries will continue to get more addicted. How do you make all the pieces of the puzzle come together and maintain national security. Thanks for your articles. Love reading your stuff.
Our drill-loving chambers of commerce have been uncharacteristicly silent on this mess. Maybe they are too busy fighting Hometown Demcracy.
Ya think the influence of the energy companies is responsable for the legislature not funding rebates on home solar systems? Face it people, we are out gunned.
The NPR feed on the side is frightening. It is a real live drama that we have allowed to be unleashed on us. Other issues seem minuscule.
soilent green....we aren't going to be able to eat the fish...maybe we can eat the politicians. Do you like Red Meat or Blue?
Lets eat the red ones first since this was their baby.
If we posit (for the sake of argument, not that I agree) Republicans responsible for the oil disaster, why didn't the all knowing rear-view driving Democrats fix the potentially deadly problem as soon as Obama took office when the two branches of government that matter in this arena were controlled by the prescient Democrats? They had eighteen months to get into it! Oh, they were busy doing other things? So was George W.; a little minor crash of a couple of planes into some buildings in Manhattan, and the subsequent aftermath in the middle east.
I'll tell you why Obama's foks didn't stop it before it happened. No one gives a shit about any of this stuff until something happens and then everyone points fingers at everyone else to make sure the blame doesn't end up with them. Of course, playing the blame game works for a while, diverting people's attention from the real issue which is how to stop the bad thing that's happened, and how to stop it from happening again. But that would require action, while talk is cheap.
For instance, what has the Obama administration done since the accident to address the issue of similarly configured oil rigs in our vicinity continuing to operate? Oh, nothing? That's what I thought.
Give me a break.
No oil, no nukes, no coal, wind and solar are unreliable. Looks like we should go back to rendered whale blubber oil and trees, everyone asleep at sundown and up at sunrise.
Quoting media matters is worse than quoting Huffington Post or Rush Limbaugh. Come on get real.
A sensible discussion is lacking here. If you have ever used any type of fossil fuel in any capacity you are to blame, not pubs or dems, HUMAN BEINGS ARE THE PROBLEM and ultimately what caused this and many other catastrophes.
Your suggestion that Republicans are responsible for the oil spill is laughable. Democrats have been in control of both houses of Congress since the 2006 midterm elections. And despite their complete control, they have failed to pass any legislation to reign in the oil industry. And in the last 1 1/2 years, Obama could have implemented any executive branch regulation of the oil industry if he so desired -- and he did nothing. So put the blame where it belongs ... with your beloved Democratic party.
H is right on target. Memo to Democrats: take ownership for the mess you made with regulatory capture and failure. It's all yours, baby.
Pass the red meat please. . .
I love this site! It's my first visit. I disagree with much of it, but the political reporting on South Florida is great! It's a real education for readers. Thank you for your hard work and dedication. Regarding this post, however, it's a gross oversimplification of a very complex issue. Since the disaster began, the hystrionics and name calling have been a bit much. If you really believe the message in your piece, there's much more effective ways to persuade readers. So, I disagree. However, once again, kudos on a great site!
Post a Comment