A reader says Google satellite view now shows the Williston by-pass under construction.
https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=wl&output=classic&dg=brw
If for some reason, the link does not take you there go to Williston, ND, and zoom in on the intersection at the four-mile corner east of Williston. It's going to be an impressive bypass, to say the least.
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Global Energy Production / Consumption Out To 2035
I hope this video does not disappear over the years.
Two data-points/screenshots that may be most important:
The biggest "takeaway" from this video is the projection coming out of Europe. The second screen shot shows that energy production growth --
remember, this includes everything, including nuclear, wind, solar, coal -- will actually be decreasing in Europe, 2012 - 2035. This goes along with what I posted some time ago over at
Europe at a tipping point, over at "
Big Stories." At that link:
European Energy became a big story on May 18, 2013, when the EU Council President predicted that Europe might become the only continent in the world to depend on imported energy.
Within that story:
Now, the second takeaway: note the incredibly huge increase in consumption in India and China (again, this is all forms of energy).
Finally, at the video but no screenshot, the amount of oil / natural gas in the Arctic: 412 billion bbls of oil equivalent, and 67% of that is natural gas. This also is in-line with Harold Hamm's statement that the Bakken contains more OOIP in than the Arctic.
Along the same line, two additional stories:
Reuters via Rigzone is reporting: Canada's Northwest Territories hold big natural gas reserves --
Canada's Northwest Territories, including its Arctic islands and the adjacent Beaufort Sea, hold more than 1.2 billion barrels of crude oil and 16.4 trillion cubic feet of marketable natural gas.
The NEB, the industry regulator, also estimated the region holds 53.3 million barrels of natural gas liquids.
The crude oil total is minor compared with the U.S. Energy Information Administration's estimate of Canada's total proved reserves of 173.11 billion barrels, but it is nearly 25 percent of the EIA's estimate of the country's natural gas reserves of 68.17 trillion cubic feet. The report by the NEB was the first in which it analysed discovered oil and gas resources in the Arctic islands as well as the Northwest Territories mainland.
Reuters via Rigzone is also reporting:
Russia's Gazprom Neft, the oil arm of the world's top gas producer Gazprom, agreed on Tuesday to develop Russia's Dolginskoye offshore Arctic oil field jointly with Vietnamese state energy company Petrovietnam.
A Reuters correspondent at the signing ceremony also said the companies signed a deal under which Gazprom Neft will supply ESPO-blend crude oil to Vietnam.
Russian oil companies, including Gazprom Neft, have been hit by Western sanctions, which limit cooperation in offshore, deep water and tight oil production. The Dolginskoye field, with more than 200 million tonnes (1.5 billion barrels) in estimated reserves, is located near Prirazlomnoye field, Russia's first offshore Arctic field launched last year.
For newbie, some estimate the Bakken to hold 500 billion bbls original oil in place.
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Venezuela In A World Of Pain
Updates
August 8, 2015:
Venezuela out of control --
PanamPost.
Original Post
CNBC is reporting:
Venezuela, for example, was already struggling to maintain domestic
order before its government revenue began drying up in the face of
plunging global oil prices.
Other OPEC members like Nigeria , having
lost the U.S. import market, are looking to Asia to buy its light sweet
crude. Many of the world's consumer-producer relationships have been
influenced in some way by America's new role as a top energy producer.
"This unconventional revolution is pretty recent. In terms of oil, it's
only been about four years, but it's moved very fast. One question is
whether the price downturn will affect the speed of growth, but I think
the defining new factor for the world oil market is this growth of
unconventional supply," said Daniel Yergin, vice chairman at energy and
economic intelligence firm IHS.
"Since 2008, U.S. oil production is up
nearly 4 million barrels a day." The energy boom that started with
hydraulic fracturing and natural gas in America and grew to include a surge in drilling of so-called
tight oil is still very new, and some of its biggest effects have yet to
be felt.
Shale may push US past Saudi Arabia as top oil
producer.
For example, the United States will begin exporting liquefied
natural gas next year, and that will feed into those Asian markets. New
pipelines will also take natural gas to Mexico.
"It's going to
revolutionize the way natural gas is going to price around the world.
There's almost nothing that can stop it," said Edward Morse, head of
global commodities research at Citigroup. And U.S. natural gas reserves
are huge.
"First is U.S., then Russia, then the state of Pennsylvania,
which a decade ago produced no gas," said Morse. The arrival of more gas
on the world market will also make it harder for countries like Russia
to extract high prices.
Look at that: one analyst listed US, #1; followed by Russia,
and then PENNSYLVANIA, at #3. I find that incredible.
I think something folks forget during this era of slumping oil prices: the rate of growth of consumption in India and China through 2035 is going to be huge, and this is a dynamic phenomenon. These countries currently have a huge daily appetite for oil, and any disruption would be catastrophic, and that appetite just keeps growing.
By the way, Daniel Yergin seems to be popping up everywhere these days in the news. I've mentioned before: the best book ever on the history of oil is probably his book,
The Prize. I read it many, many years ago, and re-read portions of it every so often.
The Frackers would easily be one chapter in that book,
The Prize. That's how incredibly "complete" and in-depth
The Prize is.
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Ferguson
I was up all night last night listening to radio reports on Ferguson. I went to bed at 7:00 a.m.
The history of Ferguson is very, very interesting. It was a booming, growing suburb on the north side of St Louis during the 70's. But then the US Justice Department stepped in in the late 70's or early 80's, and things changed. Those who saw it coming, moved out.
Something that was very rarely mentioned on talk radio overnight: if the Ferguson economy was booming, a lot of
these businesses would bounce back, but the rest of the US is not like
North Dakota. The rest of the nation, with some exceptions, is still in a
deep recession. I think the majority of Ferguson businesses were
probably surviving on the margin; this will put them over the edge. Most
will not be able to re-build. New businesses thinking of building in
Ferguson: no way. The business owners I see on
CNBC video (internet) suggest the are putting up a good front, but I think this will be the death knell for the city of Ferguson "as we know it," the end of a "process" that began in the late 1970s / early 1980s.
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The Big Lebowski
After listening to talk radio all night to follow the Ferguson story (and not conservative talk radio -- I bet I was one of the very few to actually listen to the entire "speech" by the prosecuting attorney), it's nice to settle down and watch The Big Lebowski again. It puts things into perspective. Also, the current issue of The Rolling Stone has a nice feature on Bob Dylan's "basement tapes." I don't think I will buy the deluxe edition for $100 (six discs) when the 2-disc set if probably "adequate" (for about $25). On another note, I was surprised how "thin" the Rolling Stone is getting. When one juxtaposes Al Sharpton, Bob Dylan, and the community-organizer-in-chief, one almost wonders if we aren't seeing a bunch of folks trying to re-live their youth. Something tells me the Coen brothers have moved on. By the way, the agitators in Ferguson can certainly be told "they did not build that" but they certainly burned it down (regardless of who built it). By the way, "everyone" criticized for the decision to release the "verdict" after dark, but whether it was planned or a complete screw-up, it was a brilliant "decision." Counter-intuitive. Those with a military background understand.
This is how I imagine Ferguson could have been:
Jesus, the Bowler, The Big Lebowski
