Gas Price Rebellion

[DocPC]

Gas dropped 3 cents a gallon across the board here overnight.

[techs]

Just hit 2.08 here. The first time it went over 2.00. Last week it was 1.99.
If Bush really wanted to help consumers and not the oil companies he could lower prices almost immediately without endangering the reserve.
The recent increase in oil output enacted by Saudi Arabia means the Saudi oil will take 2 months to reach the U.S. If an equivalent amount of oil being shipped by Saudis were released by National Reserve it would reach the market in days.
Don't hold your breath though. George may just need a couple of hundred million more for the campaign when he declines public financing. I am sure the oil companies will oblige.

[Major Kong]

$1.89 for 87 unleaded here in Eagle River. I forgot to ask my folks this afternoon what their stations are charging in SW Virginia. I'll call in the morning and find out. Oh out in the Alaskan Bush prices per gallon have hit $5 a gallon for 87.

[techs]

Major Kong I read your post. I am still digesting it. It would help ime f you knew the answers to these two multipart questions:

First: In regards to your exploration budget. Will you be increasing your spending this year on exploration due to greater revenues and profits? or would you wait til next year when you determined your total yearly revenue? And is your exploration budget a straight percentage of revenue or do you explore based the projected price of oil versus the projected cost of extraction?

Second: From what I have read oil fields have some computed rate of extraction versus total extraction. In other words if you pump more quickly a field might produce less over the course of its lifetime? I understand it is a range and is also not precise? So during times like these of really high oil prices do you pump more, sacrificing total output to get more to sell at the current high rate?
thanks.

[inferno_gn]

Hi there,

I think oil prices at it's high is a good thing. It shows us how dependant we are when it comes to this source of energy. I just hope that idiot Bush (excuse me, that's how I think of him) don't go dig for oil in Alaska and pratically destory everything there, while he can actually just increase the mimimun level of evergy effiency in cars more then the current standard, especailly in SUVs or high demanding vericles. It will not only save tons of oil every day, but save the enviroment as well. I'm sure they are many ways to cut back your oil spending.

Don't forget were your oil is coming from when you fill up.

Ju Leon...

[TechZ]

it does give auto companies an incentive to improve efficiency and try alternative energy sources

[Major Kong]

Crap!!!! I'm sorry techs I wrote a nice missive in re to your questions walked away from the PC for 5 minutes and IE6 locked up! Back to Opera 7.50.
Well I lost my train of though so I will make my answers KISS.
#1 Our exploration plan for 2004 was made in 2001 as part of a 10 year plan. The only thing that had to be tweaked was our "annual" budget which we still underestimated. I'm actually on the mineral extraction and Natural Gas side of my company and revenue doesn't actually come to play per se. The only thing the bottom line comes into play is in re to the amount we spend. In some years our biggest exploration expenditures have been when we are seriously in the red.
#2 Ah yes the practice is sometimes referred to as "High Grading". Yes companies do ramp it up in times when a market goes from bear to bull. It has been my experience over the last 23 years that this practice will pay off handsomely for a year or two, but it does catch up in around 5 years. The company I work for does not high grade, but I'd be a complete ostrich to say it doesn't happen. It's not like it's an On & Off switch that can be thrown at will, but usually given a 60-90 day window and a company can step it up if it has the resources.
I ceratinly hope this helps. Also please keep in mind that the accounting practices of the mineral extraction industry (mining, oil, smelting & refining) is ummm...unique to say the least. What might be worth $2B in 2004 may be only worth $900M in 2006. Weird just plain weird, but so goes the industry I chose to go in to back in '80.

Now to Ju Leon's ummmm interesting comment. We are already on the North Slope of the Brooks Range and the Beaufort Sea. Been there for many years now. Guess what? The caribou are flourishing (as I can attest to the 350,000 that went through the tundra where I work back in November) and the 'skeeter's are as big as ever. I find it interesting that just on the other side of the Caribou herd in the ANWR that Canada is pouring mega $$$$$$$$$$ into the development of it's side oil fields in the Yukon. Hmm do ewe want to venture a guess who are some of the biggest lobbiest against the US opening up ANWR? Go on take a stab at it ewe can do it. I'll give ya a hint their flag has a Maple Leaf on it.

[paraflyer]

The recent increase in oil output enacted by Saudi Arabia means the Saudi oil will take 2 months to reach the U.S. If an equivalent amount of oil being shipped by Saudis were released by National Reserve it would reach the market in days.

That's just utter bull$hit.

Remeber the "heating oil crisis" that happened during the Klinton administration? Gore and company "graciously" opened the strategic reserves then, and what happened to the prices?

Absolutely nothing.

[Ya_know]

The recent increase in oil output enacted by Saudi Arabia means the Saudi oil will take 2 months to reach the U.S. If an equivalent amount of oil being shipped by Saudis were released by National Reserve it would reach the market in days.
Don't hold your breath though. George may just need a couple of hundred million more for the campaign when he declines public financing. I am sure the oil companies will oblige.

You know that the rest of the world is feeling this just as bad, and many are feeling it much worse than we are. You seem to think, and respond so eloquently stating that Bush is completely at fault for the oil prices being so high.

Techs, let me spell this out for you to understand one very important point:

This is not just a national policy problem, it's an International crisis!!!

By releasing the national reserve, we have absolutely no guarantee whatsoever that this will effect prices in the long run for us or any of the countries out there feeling the squeeze…there may be a slight flux here, but once we close the reserve the prices will bounce right back…and will probably continue to go up, and what about taxes to pay for replenishing the reserve? There is a hidden cost to this as well.

You have all the answers, and so many good questions , solve this global problem for us and I will be most obliged…

And if you can't solve it, then you need to take back everything bad you've said about Bush and these Oil issues...