Posted on 01/06/2011 5:38:55 AM PST by Kaslin
Energy Policy: Oil prices are surging to levels that will soon crimp economic growth. And what's our government doing about it? Just making it worse.
Since President Obama took office in January 2009, the price of oil has rocketed 117% to $90.41 a barrel and gasoline has jumped 67% to $3.07 a gallon. In the 34 industrialized nations, oil imports have surged 34% in the last year to $790 billion. The U.S. alone has seen a $72 billion jump.
All this imperils a fragile recovery from the financial crisis. "Oil prices are entering a dangerous zone for the global economy," says Fatih Birol, chief economist at the International Energy Agency.
Given the clear threat, it's economically irrational to sit on our hands and fail to develop our own energy resources. At least 130 billion barrels of oil and trillions of cubic feet of natural gas lie offshore, and hundreds of billions of barrels more are locked in shale deposits in the Northeast and West. Yet our policy remains leaving this wealth alone.
More than mere incompetence is at work here. It's becoming more and more obvious that Obama's energy policy is meant to raise prices by making fossil fuels harder to produce and use. Indeed, the White House has followed a deliberate policy of attacking Americans' use of energy, turning it into something of a moral crusade.
In just two years, as Steve Everley of the American Solutions blog has noted, the Obama administration has:
• Virtually shut down oil drilling in the Gulf. Yes, the six-month moratorium announced during the BP oil spill ended in November. But regulators have made it nearly impossible for oil firms to restart operations and have slapped strict new rules on drilling even in shallow waters.
(Excerpt) Read more at investors.com ...
The GOP congress needs to make a visit out to Washington state and be photographed showing the American people the new port built to ship US coal to China
And this is a surprise to who? Captain obvious needs to have his beeber stuned. Barry himself was happy the gas prices went up in the Bush years. He wanted to have the gas prices go back up "but not as fast". Well, it seems he got his wish. Not just a dork, but a dangerous dork. This is a bigger security issue than the sale of carrots at McDonalds.
“Hello. I’m Barack Obama. And I’m here to help.”
Well, I guess Marine One and Air Farce One use compost for fuel.
One year nine 10 months and 27 days till election day 2012!
When gas went over $4/gal in 2008, Obama, when asked, said he didn’t have a problem with that price, although he would have preferred that we got there more slowly.
The American economy is under attack.
There is a deliberate attempt to bankrupt America and destroy the private sector free market economy.
Oil is the lifeblood of the American economy. This is why oil is demonized.
The man made climate change hoax is all about destroying Capitalism by destroying the oil and coal industry.
If you do not want to believe this, I hope you will be able to comtinue in your disbelief.
If the left succeeds, you eventually will be forced to believe.
If the economy was doing well now and demand was up and rising, just think what the price of oil would be. And the price of gasoline per gallon.
We must get on the side of the oil producers in this war.
This is being done INTENTIONALLY!!
Have gas price rise, blame the evil oil companies for being greedy, let the media start screeching that WE ‘need’ more government oversight on oil companies and presto!!!...the government starts has an excuse to ‘regulate’(control) oil companies in the name of the common good.
This really is a crime. The US has enough resources to supply all domestic needs. They are not being exploited for purely political reasons.
Seems 0bambi has read at least a few pages of Sir Winston Churchill's "Second World War"
I WAS certain Obama wanted to destroy America. I was wrong. He wants to destroy the WORLD.
staring = starting...need more coffee this am.
People have forgotten that it was the price of oil going over $100.00 a barrel is what started the '08 economic crash not toxic mortgages. Many companies went broke (Flying J and Semstream) for being on the wrong side of oil future trades and that had a snowball affect that started the collapse of Wall street firms.
If we don't get lower and sustained costs of oil, then this weak recovery we are going through will evaporate.
What we need is MORE ethanol from CORN.(sarc)
Just one of many similar stories we’ll see in the future:
“Marathon ends contract for Noble’s Jim Day semi
Jan 5, 2011
Paula Dittrick
OGJ Senior Staff Writer
HOUSTON, Jan. 5 — Marathon Oil Co. confirmed it cancelled its contract to lease the Jim Day deepwater semisubmersible from Noble Corp.
The news came more than 2 months after the Obama administration lifted its ban on drilling in the deepwater gulf following the Macondo well blowout. BP PLC operated Macondo.
“We are disappointed by Marathon’s actions,” Noble Chief Executive David W. Williams said. “Fortunately, the Noble Jim Day is one of the most capable rigs in existence, and there are already a number of potential customers interested in a unit of this caliber.”
In December 2010, Noble had said Marathon might terminate the contract if the semi was not ready for work in the gulf by yearend. The semi can drill in 12,000 ft of water.
“Marathon’s stated reason for the termination was that the rig had not been accepted by Marathon by Dec. 31, 2010,” Noble said in a Jan. 3 release. “Noble believes the rig is ready to commence operations and should have been accepted by Marathon.”
Noble also reported that an independent third-party affirmed the rig’s readiness and that the unit’s subsea system, including the blowout preventer, has received its certificate of compliance.
The 4-year contract had a day rate of $515,000, and the day rate could have been as high as $550,000 depending upon cost escalators and revenues outlined in the contract, said John Freeman, an analyst with Raymond James & Associates.
“Moreover, the rig is currently in the Gulf of Mexico, where no deepwater work is being allowed,” Freeman said. “Bottom Line: The rig is now idle and we expect much lower rate as the company tries to secure work.” He suggested the day rate could be $400,000 with at least 3 months of downtime. “
LOL!
PERFECT!
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