Posted on 12/19/2005 10:14:48 PM PST by HAL9000
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - An antitrust lawsuit filed Monday against Exxon Mobil Corp. and BP PLC claims the two oil giants are restricting the nation's supply of natural gas and keeping prices at record highs.The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Fairbanks, says the two companies acted together to eliminate competition for the exploration, development and marketing of natural gas from Alaska's North Slope to U.S. markets.
"The only reason for them to collusively not to sell is to try to continue the scarcity that has driven natural gas prices to historic highs," said David Boies, the attorney for the Alaska Gasline Port Authority, which filed the lawsuit.
BP and Exxon Mobil are two of Alaska's biggest oil and gas leaseholders, and are the operators for the North Slope's largest oil and gas fields, Prudhoe Bay and Point Thomson. Alaska's North Slope is estimated to have at least 35 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves, which could supply 7 percent to 10 percent of the nation's natural gas, Boies said.
[snip]
(Excerpt) Read more at news.moneycentral.msn.com ...
Even if it were true, highly doubtful. there wouldn't really anything wrong with that in a free market because their competitors would underbid them. But we don't have a free market....
David Boies sure seems to make the rounds.
Just as I suspected, read the entire article and you'll find a Dem running for office.
Boies Ping!!!
Governor Gives Gas Pipeline Update
http://www.sitnews.us/1205news/121805/121805_gaspipeline.html
December 18, 2005
Sunday
In a press conference held Friday in Anchorage, Alaska Governor Frank H. Murkowski provided an update on gas pipeline negotiations and announced that negotiations are suspended over the holidays. The state will reengage with the producers BP and ExxonMobil once they provide satisfactory responses on several key contract issues that the state has presented to them.
"We are at what I would call a defining moment," said the governor. "All of the parties have reached agreement on fiscal terms that are very positive for the state. But there are other critical issues on the table that, for the state, are non-negotiable. I am confident that BP and ExxonMobil will come back to the state after the holidays with satisfactory resolution to the items we have presented to them."
ConocoPhillips and the state announced in October that they had reached a contract agreement that includes the provisions the state is asking of ExxonMobil and BP.
"I have invited the CEO's of the three companies to Juneau in early 2006," said the governor. "I have received the commitment from the CEO's of BP and ExxonMobil to resolve these negotiations expeditiously - and I look forward to their conclusion. The Alaska gas pipeline is about Alaska's future, but it is also critical to the nation. Alaska is America's pipeline to energy independence."
Thanks for the ping!
Not unusual for AP, the wire disservice that reported Bush being booed when he had actually been cheered.
You don't know what you are talking about. Whoever controls the pipeline, controls the price. It's price control without collusion.
BP and Exxon wanted the natural gas to go to the midwest because that is their market area. Conoco was already building LNG tankers in anticipation of a Valdez pipeline. BP, being a foreign company, is not allowed to own ships and therefore did not want the Valdez pipeline. They were trying to shut out Conoco.
Also, BP opposes drilling in the ANWR because they are not permitted to increase their Alaska holdings. They used to support the drilling, until they took over ARCO.
I find that intensely interesting! Did ARCO have to make that self-limiting deal to get such a good deal on what they have on the north slope?
There is no more ARCO. When BP took over ARCO, one of the conditions was that BP sell ARCO Alaska and the marine dept.(BP is not allowed to operate ships that travel within the US, Jones Act) because it would have given BP the lions share of Alaskan oil. So, ARCO Alaska and the marine dept were sold to Phillips (now Conoco-Phillips). BP has been most unhappy with the arrangement and tried to convince Conoco to allow them to run the operations for them. BP is a foreign company and their MO are foreign, not at all like US companies that most of us are familiar with. Bottom line and control of the market are all that matter.
BP has also been restricting the market by controlling the pipeline in WA state and setting arbitrary pricing from the end of the pipeline, even though the local gas never enters the pipeline. They are going so far as to box in the higher octane gasoline of other countries with lower octane gasoline to dilute it.
Well there's one of their stations on every other corner down here!!!
I don't know where I've been, but I've not been hearing all of this and I'd like to know more if you have the time. I'll bet there's more than just me as well.
BP also agreed to keep the ARCO stations and their low price strategy in areas where BP is also sold.
That is BS. ConocoPhillips was the first of the three to annouce agreement with the basic terms of the land pipeline.
The midwest is the target market because it will not compete with the multiple LNG terminals being planned on the West Coast.
You're wrong. Conoco already has the first of the LNG tankers built and operating, but not in Alaska, yet. The Conoco LNG fleet were intended to move gas from Alaska to the west coast, but BP and Exxon seemingly talked them out of it for a while. The article on this subject in the WSJ includes the information that Conoco had reached an agreement with the state officials for the Valdez LNG pipeline.
Neither ConocoPhillips, nor anyone else in the World, has a LNG Tanker that can move LNG from Alaska to the US West Coast due to the Jones Act. No US ship builder makes a LNG Tanker so no company could own one. ConocoPhillips has multiple LNG interest around the world and any Tanker Purchase would not have been intended for Alaska to US West Coast.
Why are you making stuff up? BP operates 8 tankers out of Valdez.
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