Robert A. Levine
Not withstanding the political contention over the Keystone pipeline, and over whether or not the
nation should be doing more drilling for oil and gas, it may be that energy independence for America is right around the corner. The current spike in oil and gas prices is due to the geo-political situation and speculative activities, and would not be improved by any immediate change in government policy.
An article by Tom Friedman in Sunday’s New York Times (http://nyti.ms/ybAEvS), makes a good case for why the nation may be an energy exporter by 2020 and notes a suggestion by the oil economist Phil Verleger that the U.S. might want to consider joining OPEC. Both Friedman and Verleger comment that America’s energy output has been growing significantly and that the nation has become a major oil and gas producer. As a potential exporter, the U.S. could benefit from “reasonably high but stable oil prices.”
There are several reasons for the stealth improvement in America’s energy status, masked by complaints from the right that not enough drilling is being approved by the Obama administration. The ethanol mandate which occurred during the Bush years frees additional oil from having to be converted to gasoline. The recent agreement by the auto industry to increase efficiency to over 50 miles per gallon for fleet averages by 2025 allows extra crude to be available for export, as incremental improvement takes place until then. Hybrids, electric cars and other fuel efficient vehicles are already contributing to the need for less gasoline. In addition, the discovery of
America’s natural gas reserves and the rapid increase in production allows it to be substituted for oil and coal. According to Verleger, America’s coming energy independence gives it a “real competitive advantage over countries forced to pay high prices for imported energy- nations such as China, European Union members and Japan.”
Bloomberg News noted last week that “Domestic oil output is the highest in eight years” and so much natural gas is being produced that the government is considering allowing some of it to be exported. If this trend continues, by 2020 America could be the world’s top energy producer with all the positive effects this would have on the economy and on international politics.
Friedman emphasizes in his article that strict environmental standards must be adhered to by the oil and gas industries to reduce conflict over extraction with local communities around the nation. This could be a potential problem with “fracking,” the technique used to extract natural gas from shale. And energy efficient cars and trucks must continue to be a priority.
It is encouraging that America appears to be on the verge of energy independence and that in the future, the leverage that countries such as Iran, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia have over us will disappear. This freedom will reduce our trade imbalance, and the ability to control our own energy prices will contribute to economic growth. In spite of the political battles over energy policy, America seems to be doing very well in terms of energy, thank you.
Resurrecting Democracy
www.robertlevinebooks.com
Not withstanding the political contention over the Keystone pipeline, and over whether or not the
An article by Tom Friedman in Sunday’s New York Times (http://nyti.ms/ybAEvS), makes a good case for why the nation may be an energy exporter by 2020 and notes a suggestion by the oil economist Phil Verleger that the U.S. might want to consider joining OPEC. Both Friedman and Verleger comment that America’s energy output has been growing significantly and that the nation has become a major oil and gas producer. As a potential exporter, the U.S. could benefit from “reasonably high but stable oil prices.”
There are several reasons for the stealth improvement in America’s energy status, masked by complaints from the right that not enough drilling is being approved by the Obama administration. The ethanol mandate which occurred during the Bush years frees additional oil from having to be converted to gasoline. The recent agreement by the auto industry to increase efficiency to over 50 miles per gallon for fleet averages by 2025 allows extra crude to be available for export, as incremental improvement takes place until then. Hybrids, electric cars and other fuel efficient vehicles are already contributing to the need for less gasoline. In addition, the discovery of
Bloomberg News noted last week that “Domestic oil output is the highest in eight years” and so much natural gas is being produced that the government is considering allowing some of it to be exported. If this trend continues, by 2020 America could be the world’s top energy producer with all the positive effects this would have on the economy and on international politics.
Friedman emphasizes in his article that strict environmental standards must be adhered to by the oil and gas industries to reduce conflict over extraction with local communities around the nation. This could be a potential problem with “fracking,” the technique used to extract natural gas from shale. And energy efficient cars and trucks must continue to be a priority.
It is encouraging that America appears to be on the verge of energy independence and that in the future, the leverage that countries such as Iran, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia have over us will disappear. This freedom will reduce our trade imbalance, and the ability to control our own energy prices will contribute to economic growth. In spite of the political battles over energy policy, America seems to be doing very well in terms of energy, thank you.
Resurrecting Democracy
www.robertlevinebooks.com
No comments:
Post a Comment