oil and gas development

The Federal Government’s Natural Gas R&d Breakthrough

Michael Giberson In the recent edition of The American magazine, the on-line journal of the American Enterprise Institute, Michael Shellenberger and Ted Nordhaus write in defense of the President’s State of the Union address claim of federal government credit for the shale gas revolution. (For those of you not keeping score at home, (1) I commented …

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Congressman Markey Still Worries About U.S. Natural Gas Exports

Michael Giberson A few weeks back Congressman Ed Markey asked the U.S. Department of Energy whether exports of natural gas might not be in the public interest (see prior note here, related note) as exports would tend to push U.S. gas prices higher. The USDOE’s response apparently didn’t mitigate Markey’s concern; today the Congressman introduced …

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Art Berman Spots Distress in the Natural Gas Industry

Michael Giberson Apparently I’m just a hot-headed, temperamental guy unwilling to sit still and listen to a patient explanation of a contrary point of view. I’ve only read the first paragraph of Art Berman’s new post at the The Oil Drum and already I’m arguing with my computer screen and searching around for data to illustrate my …

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Presidents, Policies, Prices and Production

Michael Giberson Robert Rapier posts this chart: Rapier noted that last week Obama observed the energy production trends: “Under my administration, domestic oil and natural gas production is up, while imports of foreign oil are down,” Obama added in his statement. “In the months ahead, we will continue to look for new ways to partner with …

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Does a Public Good Argument Justify Subsidizing Private Energy Production?

Michael Giberson Yesterday I disputed the analysis by which the Breakthough Institute wanted to claim credit on behalf of the federal government for the shale gas boom; today I dispute their claimed broader implications for federal energy R&D policy. Late in their op-ed, the Breakthrough folks shift emphasis from a narrow drilling technology story to …

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A Good Non-Technical Introduction to Shale Gas

Michael Giberson Paul M. Barrett, for Bloomberg, has written up a pretty good introduction to natural gas from shale. The article delves a bit into the history and geology of the subject, but focuses more on the business efforts that turned a modestly interesting rock into a significant economic resource and the environmental politics that …

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Praise for a New York Times Article on Natural Gas Fracking (or, How Property Rights Help Mitigate Potential Environmental Harms)

Michael Giberson I’m writing in praise of a New York Times article on natural gas fracking. Yes, really! Even more surprising, I’m writing in praise of a New York Times on fracking written by Ian Urbina. Yes, really! What is this marvel, you ask? I answer, “Rush to Drill for Natural Gas Creates Conflicts With Mortgages.” What is so …

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Energy Industry Continues to Reshape Itself to Fit the New World of Oil and Gas Resources

Michael Giberson Two multi-billion dollar deals in the news this weekend provide additional evidence of how advances in drilling technology have unlocked vast new energy resources and are reshaping the energy industry. Norwegian oil company Statoil is paying about $4.4 billion for Brigham Exploration, getting “a stronger foothold in unconventional resources” according to the Wall …

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Don’t Peak: On Ill-Considered Peak Oil Debates

Michael Giberson Daniel Yergin’s peak oil commentary in last Saturday’s Wall Street Journal has set the econoblogosphere to chattering, or at least those of us in the energy corner. In addition to the clash of the titans, i.e. James Hamilton’s “More thoughts on peak oil” rejoinder to Yergin, the mere mortals are going at it, …

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