US getting closer to energy independence?

US getting closer to energy independence? Daily oil production on track for biggest one-year jump

Are natural gas suppliers purposely overproducing?

On December 27, 2013, Matt Wald published a piece in the New York Times titled New Energy Struggles on Its Way to Markets that points to the predictable consequences of having too many energy options chasing too few customers. When there is excess supply compared to demand, prices tend to fall rather dramatically. Falling prices […]

The U.S. Monthly Energy Review

The US Monthly Energy Review is now up with all the US Oil and Gas data for November. US (estimated) Crude + Condensate production was 8,002 kb/d for November. I think that will be revised later because the Bakken had a bad month in November. The average, so far this year, has been 7,438 kb/d and […]

Will Russia frack for oil?

Shale oil is poised to go international, Grealy writes. It’s already happening in Argentina, Australia and China, but the big prize is in Russia’s Bazhenov shale in Western Siberia. One of my stranger speaker invitations recently was earlier this month in Moscow to an Adam Smith conference on Russia EOR (enhanced oil recovery), where I […]

Brazil Advances in the Shale Game

Brazil, which has dazzled the world with the discovery of billions of barrels of pre-salt oil, has now moved into the shale game that has revolutionized the United States – despite the fact that the 12th tender Nov. 28 did not attract many companies. Winning bidders included 10 power firms. Petrobras, Brazil’s state controlled oil […]

UK Willing to Develop North Sea Rhum Gas Field Shared with Iran

TEHRAN (FNA)- The UK voiced willingness to support resumption of gas production from Rhum gas field after Iran decided to develop the field. British government had in 2010 stopped gas production in Rhum field, which is co-owned by British Petroleum and the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), due to sanctions imposed on Iran, announcing that […]

If Mexico is the next Brazil in oil production, brace for disappointment

Recent reforms that would open oil exploration and development in Mexico to major oil companies for the first time in decades has the media all atwitter about the prospects of a reversal in declining Mexican oil output and a possible doubling of production. The reforms have brought out comparisons with Brazil which has a similar […]

Oil Production Begins At Gazprom’s Arctic Offshore Field

Russia detained 30 Greenpeace activists protesting against Arctic drilling at the Prirazlomnaye platform in September. Russia’s energy company Gazprom says its Arctic offshore Prirazlomnoye field has started to produce oil. Chief Executive Officer Aleksei Miller said in a statement on December 20 that “we have become the pioneers of Russia’s Arctic development.” The start of […]

Nineteen Straight Dry Holes

My late father’s old Air Force buddy related to me a few years back how he had drilled nineteen straight dry holes before finally bringing in a producer. Not only am I in awe of the man’s tenacity, I am amazed in the light of current events how he was able to raise the funds […]

Will US Light Tight Oil Save The World?

There has been plenty of hoopla lately concerning the boom in shale (LTO) oil production. From the New York Times: Surge Seen in U.S. Oil Output, Lowering Gasoline Prices Domestic oil production will continue to soar for years to come, the Energy Department predicted on Monday, scaling to levels not seen in nearly half a century […]

Tech Talk – The IEA World Energy Outlook

It is the time of year again that different folk stare into their own versions of a crystal ball and project how much energy the world will need in the future, and where they think that it will come from. It is interesting to look at these various predictions as the global supply picture morphs […]

EIA: U.S. shale oil production to peak in 2021 at 4.8 mln bpd

Production from shale formations in the United States, which has led to an unexpected reversal in long declining oil output, will peak at 4.8 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2021, according to an Energy Information Administration forecast issued on Monday. This year is the bumper year for production out of the tightly packed shale […]

When wil US Light Tight Oil (LTO) Peak?

Ron Patterson has graciously allowed me to cross post this here.  It originally was posted at oilpeakclimate.blogspot.com  The rapid rise in oil output since 2008 has the mainstream media claiming that the US will soon be energy independent.  US Crude oil output has increased about 2.8 MMb/d (56%) since 2008 and about 2 MMb/d is from the […]

U.S. forecasts natural gas boom through 2040

The production of both oil and natural gas is now booming in the United States, but a new 30-year federal forecast sees a falloff in oil after 2020. It expects no slowdown for natural gas. America’s energy boom will continue for decades, and natural gas will replace coal as the largest source of U.S. electricity […]

‘Watch what we do, not what we say’: Shell cancels U.S. gas-to-liquids plant

When civil rights advocates grew restless because of President Richard Nixon’s right-wing rhetoric on the issue of desegregation, then-Attorney General John Mitchell told them, ”Watch what we do, not what we say.” Those following the hype over America’s supposed newfound abundance of oil and natural gas would do well to follow that advice when evaluating […]

Trains From North Dakota Will Now Carry More Crude Oil Than Keystone XL Would

  A train leaves a crude oil loading terminal near Epping, ND. CREDIT: AP Photo/Rangeland Energy, LLC A top official at North Dakota’s Mineral Resources Department said Thursday that as much as 90 percent of the state’s crude will move by freight rail in 2014, just one day before announcing record oil production of almost […]

Bakken Update, Is Production Slowing Down?

The Bakken production data published by North Dakota is out with October production data. ND Monthly Bakken Oil Production Statistics (Bakken Only) and ND Monthly Oil Production Statistics (All North Dakota). The below chart is North Dakota Bakken barrels per day and All North Dakota Barrels per day. As you can see it’s mostly Bakken and […]

US Energy Independence: Another Pipe Dream

Tank cars offload crude, likely from the North Dakota Bakken formation. Photo by Roy Luck. Creative Commons licensed. One of Canada’s top energy analysts has warned investors and geologists that “the shale revolution” will not meet conventional expectations as a so-called game-changer in energy production. Speaking at the Denver meeting of the Geological Society of […]

Oil production outside Opec at modern peak

PRODUCTION outside the world’s traditional oil-rich nations has ballooned during the past year, rising to nearly half of the global output. According to the latest report on the market by the International Energy Agency (IEA), countries outside the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) are producing the most that they have in decades. States not […]

The Peak Oil Crisis: California’s Bubble Pops

There was an important study released by the Post Carbon Institute last week that gives us an insight into how long our great shale oil bonanza or more likely bubble is going to last. As you might suspect, the thrust of the new report is bad news so we are unlikely to ever read much […]

IEA Says Iran Oil Exports Rising But Challenges Abound

Iran’s oil exports are already rebounding after an interim deal with the West but the Islamic Republic won’t flood markets even if international sanctions are lifted, the International Energy Agency said Wednesday. The IEA, the top energy watchdog, said global oil demand will be higher than expected next year and that could push up oil […]

Energy Return: Formula For Confusion

Energy Return on Energy Invested One of the criticisms of oil sands production is that the process requires too much energy. Some argue that these projects are a poor way to use energy, because the energy return on energy invested (EROEI) is ~ 3:1 (which would mean it takes 1 BTU of energy input to […]

Russia expects post-Soviet record for oil production

Energy Minister Alexander Novak said oil output from the country for 2013 should reach a post-Soviet record of 3.8 billion barrels. Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported Russia in 2012 increased oil output from the previous year by 1.3 percent to 518 million metric tons, approximately 3.79 billion barrels. “This year we expect oil […]

Robert Rapier: The Cost of Production and Energy Return of Oil Sands

Introduction Today’s article continues the series covering my recent trip to the Athabasca oil sands around Fort McMurray, Alberta. This is an annual trip that the Canadian government hosts for energy journalists, and expenses for the trip were paid for by the Canadian government. Previous articles in this series include: Oil Sands and the Environment […]

OPEC Pumps Least Crude in More Than 2 Years as Saudi Cuts

OPEC reduced crude production in November to the lowest level in more than two years as output dropped below the organization’s 30 million barrel-a-day ceiling for a third month. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries pumped 29.63 million barrels last month compared with 29.83 million in October, OPEC said in its monthly oil market report […]

EIA Shale Oil Drilling Productivity Report

The new EIA Drilling Productivity Report has just been published with their shale oil production and prediction numbers out through January 2014. I have discovered something very strange about their numbers. But first here is the Bakken data. I have shortened the time frame to just two years in order to better show what is happening. […]

Leviathan gas only in late 2017

Keith Elliott says that the Leviathan gas field will cost $8 billion to develop and is confident of finding oil in the region. Development of the Leviathan natural gas field will cost $8 billion and production will begin in late 2017 said Noble Energy Inc. (NYSE: NBL) EVP Eastern Mediterranean Keith Elliott at the “Globes” […]

Now the world needs new energy systems

On December 9th, the day before the Nobel Prizes are handled out in Stockholm, there is a “Nobel Week Dialogue” in Gothenburg. This year’s theme is “Exploring the Future of Energy” and participating Nobel Laureates are presented by the organizers. My contribution to the dialogue is now published by Svenska Dagbladet on “Brännpunkt” under the […]

BP Pushes Technical Limits To Tap Extreme Fields

BP’s strategy after the Deepwater Horizon tragedy: Go deeper. BP is leading an industry-wide push to develop technology that can retrieve oil from formations that are so deep under the sea floor, and under such high pressure and temperature, that conventional equipment would melt or be crushed by the conditions. One BP field in the […]

Gail Tverberg: The Shale Oil Boom is More “Mirage” than “Miracle”

Gail Tverberg, is a professional actuary who applies classic risk assessment procedures to global resources: studying issues such as oil & natural gas depletion, water shortages, climate change, etc. She is widely known in the Peak Cheap Oil space for her reports issued across energy websites over the years under the penname “GailTheActuary”. In this […]

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