Conoco says access to offlimit areas key for economy

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Governments should allow oil and gas companies greater access to energy sources to help drive economic growth even as states push to expand alternative energy, the head of oil major ConocoPhillips (COP.N) said on Wednesday.

“Our hope is that the resource-rich countries will recognize that the industry needs greater access to low-cost oil and natural gas,” Conoco Chief Executive Officer James Mulva said, according to the text of a speech he delivered in London.

High energy prices were blamed for stoking economic problems last year in the United States and other countries as crude oil prices raced to record highs near $150 a barrel. That helped prompt Washington to overturn a federal ban on offshore drilling in some areas.

But the economic recession that has hit the United States, Europe and other countries has eroded demand and brought oil prices down more than 75 percent.

That has raised fears that countries will again raise barriers to some areas and subsequently lead to a squeeze in oil supplies once the economic downturn has passed.

Reuters