To Drill or Not to Drill? That is the Question

Leave Arctic oil untapped

Let the next generations balance need and risks

– The Register Guard editorial

…Exploiting the fossil fuel resources of the Arctic involves several types of risk, all of which should deferred until better judgments on technical, economic and environmental issues can be made…

The economic risks are also large…The resources of the Arctic are the patrimony of every American, and leasing exploits them at a time when oil prices are low.

…Shell clearly expects prices to be higher when Arctic oil production ramps up, but Americans also should play a long game and realize that the longer the oil stays in the ground, the more valuable it will be in terms of income from leases and royalties…

… The Shell project would lock in decades of Arctic oil production at a time when the United States and the world are awakening to the need for a steep reduction in fossil fuel consumption…

We Respond & Your Comments

Listen up, Shell Oil execs – You’ve ignored the basic economics of oil exploration and production! But thank heaven The Register Guard is setting you straight on:

• Economic risks of exploring in the Arctic
• Judging when oil should be extracted for maximum profit
• Failure to account for future reductions of fossil fuel consumption

But before you plug up those exploration holes, bring your ships back to port and fire all those MBAs whose projections sent you on that fool’s errand up north, click on http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2015/08/arctic_oil_drilling_vital_for.html.

Here you’ll learn that declining Alaska Pipeline production is causing West Coast imports of foreign oil to skyrocket and that the only way to secure a safe, reliable, affordable supply of the energy Oregon (including The Register Guard) needs to grow jobs is to drill in… the Arctic.

Maybe those guys and gals at Shell aren’t so dumb after all.

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