Your Thoughts on the Oil/Energy Situation?

[indykid]

The difference in the price of gasoline between here and Europe is that here the feds charge an 18.4 cents per gallon tax, with at least Indiana tacking on another 18 cents plus sales tax. There are other pass along taxes on the gallon, but no where near the amount of tax on gasoline in Europe that gives them a $10 per gallon price equivalent. If gasoline in the US was taxed like it is in Europe ours too would be double what it is.

Unfortunately when it goes from $3.00 per gallon to $4.00 per gallon usually that is based on speculation and not actual cost plus tax.

It would be nice if we were to open up some new refineries, a novel idea, drill our own, and be able to tell the middle east to drown in their oil.

 

[shibumiseeker]

Should the lack of rebuttals mean that everyone agrees with the prediction of a supply shortage?
What's YOUR plan to deal with this if/when it occurs?

I dealt with it years ago.

 

[Justus]

It would be nice if we were to open up some new refineries, a novel idea, drill our own, and be able to tell the middle east to drown in their oil.

From what I can find the total US Reserves (Estimated by the US Gov't) equal 30 billion barrels and
US Consumption is 7 billion barrels a year

That's only a little over 4 years of oil independence.

 

[TaunTaun]

I'm going to repost something I put on my faceplace page...Dealing more with coal, but it has a direct effect on other energy prices.

Food for thought for those staying warm this winter:

Background Info: 24 states in the US have declared energy emergencies this winter and are still currently in effect. These declared emergencies do things like loosen rules like how many hours a truck driver is allowed to work hauling fuel, etc. During any other time though, it is too dangerous to allow them to work longer hours. The states wont run out of propane or gas, but it is a matter of getting the fuel to their destinations. One of the reasons for the shortages is that a major pipeline for propane was temporarily closed in the Midwest for maintenance. Also occurring during this is rationing. People are receiving about a third of what they are normally delivered for home use. Then to top it off, another pipeline supplying us in Winnipeg exploded.

Energy Consumption: Currently, EPA rules (these are decided by themselves, changes of rules and regulations do not have to be approved by ANY elected body in the US) are forcing 32 Coal plants to shutdown, with another 36 possible. Half of this total number is located smack dab in the Ohio River Valley. That is Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, and portions of West Virginia and Kentucky. The Midwest. The EPA and a lot of our elected officials claims that these are the oldest and dirtiest coal plants in the US. The US has a total of about 600 Coal Plants for electricity production. Meanwhile, over 170 of this total is scheduled to close or be radically restructured within the next 10 years, most of them within the next 5. This coal generates 44% of the electricity used in the US. Back in 2011, there were 1191 coal plants in the US. So, anyone want to guess how many new coal plants (cleaner and better!) are being opened to offset the loss of energy production? How about other types like nuclear or natural gas? Well, currently all coal plants being built are in a state of indefinite delay, most are being scrapped. One nuclear plant in the last 6 years have been approved for build. The slack in being forced onto the natural gas industry.

Buildup to my point: Natural gas plants are going to be forced to drastically increase their production of energy within the next 5 years, even more so under the next 10 years. Americans are not decreasing their energy usage, it increases every year despite many attempts to increase usage efficiency (and honestly, we are doing good in that regard. Efficiency is a more responsible usage of our supplies. Just don't give me a smart meter and expect it to go on my house without a fight.) So what happens to the Midwest and the rest of the country in 5 years, the next time we have a hard, cold, deadly winter? Governors and local pols are already telling us in this "emergency" that we need to conserve electricity and minimize use of natural gas for heat, etc. You ready for these shortages and emergencies to be even worse?

My Point: We are some seriously deep doo-doo. Rolling brownouts and blackouts are already prevalent in states like California. What happens when the rest of the country doesn't have enough juice to take up the slack? What happens when that happens to us in Summer? Or even worse, what happens when that happens to us in a winter like this? Blackouts due to no juice available with temperatures in the sub-zeroes and wind chills deep in the negatives. How long does your house stay warm if you turn the heat off? After Hurricane Sandy, people were building fires in the middle of their homes for a year after, to provide heat for themselves. Bundled up in the cold, no heating, no running water. Yeah, running water will be gone too unless you got some emergency stores and/or a hand pump if you live in a rural area. If you live inside city limits, the city will keep their water pumps turned on for pressure, right? I'm sure an energy shortage would not effect them any at all...
Elections have serious and dire circumstances. We have elected nationally a political body that is intent on building up a professional bureaucracy. They are not elected, and they are accountable to very few. They write new rules, and we are forced to accept them for "the public good." We are looking down the tunnel at some troubling times. That isn't open space providing the light that we see up ahead. That is the train that we set in motion ourselves, barreling straight at us. People are gonna whine, complain, threaten, and cajole when the troubles start. "It wasn't my fault!" "You did this!" "How was I to know?" "Think of the children!" These will be some of the excuses used by those responsible. Those responsible will be us, ourselves. We are shooting ourselves in the foot, and we do not care. My goal at this point is to store up enough food, water, and other supplies to survive that first die-off. The survivors maybe can rebuild with some better DNA.

 

[RockofStrength]

The surge in oil prices over the last 40 yrs has allowed alternative renewable energy to compete. This investment is allowing those sources to lower prices through economies of scale, investment in research, and wide scale adoption. A role I believe the gumm'nt should assist. Solyndra not withstanding. Someone's gotta light the spark to fuel the fire.

The problem being that governments aren't much better than private companies when it comes to looking to the future. Many of the solar "investments" and the subsidies for ethanol etc. have largely been for the benefit of the people who make money off of those ventures rather than for any practical future use.

 

[Justus]

Blog article about a multi-billion dollar "oops" and a several year delay bringing a new oil field into production.
AdventuresinCapitalism | Kashagan

 

[Khazik]

Currently my answer is driving my V-Strom motorcycle at 50mpg no matter how hard I rip on the throttle, good for on-road and off-road use, with some big 'ole frickin hard bags on it. If gas starts going up even more, sell the Motorcycle (or keep to have on-hand a long distance vehicle) and use my 'hybrid' style pedal bike with a nice big bag on the back of it and panniers that fold out sitting atop a stout rack; I've got replacement tubes, tire patch and plug kits of course.

Energy resources/materials for transportation go up even more? I'll be one physically fit MOFO with my multiple pairs of shoes ready for anything, and run/walk to where I need to go. For staying warm? I'll burn the garage then the house down, they're the last things I 'need' at this point

 

[Justus]

Some insight into the financial side of fracking

Fossil Fuel Industry Is The Next Subprime Danger : SRSrocco Report

 

[OneShotFOGE]

The whole fracking industry likely is a bubble. Its very like the amount of energy to be fracked is overstated. Plus the side effects of fracking are frightening.

We could probably tackle the energy thing on its own, but btw that, climate change, saving the planet, and possibly a water shortage, I think we are in for some interesting times in the next 20 years or so.

 

[Justus]

Oil companies are bailing out of the North Sea due to high taxes.

Surging North Sea Project Costs Are Putting The Region?s Future At Risk: Tullow Oil plc, Premier Oil PLC, XCITE ENERGY LIMITED | The Motley Fool UK

 

[Sybaris]

There's too much of a global infrastructure built up around energy produced by coal and oil to go cold turkey so as with anything else with that kind of investment we will have to endure rising prices through a "graceful" obsolescence.