I will believe the Saudis don't see any upcoming problems with Ghawar when they cancel one of their projects due to low oil prices. If they continue to be full steam ahead with increasing their capacity then I think they are aware that Ghawar may not be as robust in 5 years time as they would like us to believe.
Joined: Mar 04, 2005 Posts: 2729 Location: New Zealand
Posted: Fri Oct 24, 2008 7:48 pm Post subject: Green Energy Likely Winner, Big Oil Loser In US Senate Races
Green Energy Likely Winner, Big Oil Loser In US Senate Races
Quote:
A strengthened Democratic majority in the U.S. Senate will likely boost the outlook for renewable-energy companies while large oil companies could be socked with a multi-billion dollar windfall profits tax next year.
Many polls predict Democrats will win a half-dozen or so U.S. Senate seats from Republicans in the Nov. 4 general election. This could give Senate Democrats a voting edge needed to approve a Renewable Portfolio Standard, or RPS, a requirement for greater alternative energy production from wind, solar and biomass.
Many Democrats promise a "new direction" in energy policy, supporting a move away from fossil fuels.
If elected, these candidates could allow Democrats to pass a windfall profits tax for Big Oil companies such as ExxonMobil (XOM), Chevron Corp. (CVX) and ConocoPhillips (COP), according to a Dow Jones Newswires review of campaign promises and polls.
There would also be more political mass to set stricter energy market regulations and to pave the way for congressional intervention of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Given the polling numbers, "the RPS is almost a certainty," said Dave Hamilton, Sierra Club director of its Global Warming and Energy Program.
CNN _________________ Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe. H. G. Wells.
Fatih Birol's motto: leave oil before it leaves us.
Posted: Fri Oct 24, 2008 9:21 pm Post subject: Re: Green Energy Likely Winner, Big Oil Loser In US Senate R
Quote:
A strengthened Democratic majority in the U.S. Senate will likely boost the outlook for renewable-energy companies while large oil companies could be socked with a multi-billion dollar windfall profits tax next year
.
nope.
The new congress will have its hands full with other issues, such as the fact that the country is effectively bankrupt, is currently fighting two wars, and the industrial sector in ruins.
The current low oil pricing will take care of any oil-company "windfalls". Low pricing will set the cause of renewable energy back 10 years.
Plus, the lobbyists are still heavily involved, and it is quite likely that any energy bill will be full of unintended consequences, i.e. ethanol.
Joined: Mar 04, 2005 Posts: 2729 Location: New Zealand
Posted: Fri Oct 24, 2008 11:51 pm Post subject: Re: Green Energy Likely Winner, Big Oil Loser In US Senate R
Well, lets play devil's advocate here. Let's say that our best hope is for revival of your renewable energy industry. This is probably the only way to stimulate your economy (and worlds for that matter) and to lead to a recovery. The recent bail-out package provides incentives for this purpose.
You, as a peakist, should know that the price of oil will not stay low for long. So the "windfalls" will come back soon.
I'm far from an expert on American corporatelobbying, but I suspect that the outcome of these practices are far from predictable, and with a new Democrat President, I suspect that there will be changes in corporate influence over the next few years.
Quote:
If he wants to defend a tax code that's more than 10,000 pages long and filled with loopholes written in by corporate lobbyists like the ones running his campaign, he's got every right. He has every right to defend offshore tax havens that let companies avoid paying taxes here in America. But I say, it's time to close corporate loopholes, shut offshore tax havens, and restore balance and fairness to our tax code.
_________________ Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe. H. G. Wells.
Fatih Birol's motto: leave oil before it leaves us.
Posted: Sat Oct 25, 2008 3:17 am Post subject: Re: Green Energy Likely Winner, Big Oil Loser In US Senate R
Quote:
You, as a peakist, should know that the price of oil will not stay low for long. So the "windfalls" will come back soon.
of course you and I and a lot of the population of the forum know this, and even some members of the US congress know this, but a lot of the US congress (including the leadership) is in complete denial. They are stuck in the 1971 paradigm that says that there is plenty of oil, the oil companies are evil, and if we just give Detroit enough subsidies, we will be able to go back to the way things were. In your spare time, look at the rantings of Carl Levin, idiot US Senator from Michigan, who of course one of the most powerful members.
You would have to have them act rationally based on not 100% clear data, in a way that causes something other than immediate short term gratification, in the face of a welcome price collapse. In other words, you are expecting them to be mature adults.
Instead, they will act like three-year olds. They will not look beyond their immediate self interest. They will expect no sacrifices from anyone. They will not defer consumption, and they will act in a way that gets them the most contributions for the next election.
Joined: Mar 04, 2005 Posts: 2729 Location: New Zealand
Posted: Sat Oct 25, 2008 4:41 am Post subject: Re: Green Energy Likely Winner, Big Oil Loser In US Senate R
You appear to be right about Carl Levin. Here are 27 comments about his record from some of his constituents. Is he likely to win again in Michigan?
I've just had a quick look at what the Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) means. It appears that it doesn't go far enough or fast enough considering that peak oil is likely to occur within the time frame they are talking about, i.e. 2020-25. One way or another, oil consumption will drop over the next 10 years or so. It's going to be interesting to see what's going to happen during this period. _________________ Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe. H. G. Wells.
Fatih Birol's motto: leave oil before it leaves us.
Posted: Sat Oct 25, 2008 9:25 am Post subject: Re: Green Energy Likely Winner, Big Oil Loser In US Senate R
Levin was dragged kicking and screaming into the CAFE standards, and only then after bountiful subsidies for the auto company execs. His main method of operation is to, in a grandstanding way, demand an investigation of the oil companies any time pump prices go up by some newsworthy amount.
His main source of power is that he is chairman of the Armed Services Committee, who of course approves the development of all of the damned weapons systems, which makes him the number one pet of the infamous "military/industrial complex". He is impervious to election challenge because of an unlimited supply of campaign money from this source.
He is leading 60/40 in the polls vs. a Republican lightweight.
Guys like this are precisely why the system is so screwed up.
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