I’ve never put much faith in the “drill, baby, drill” approach to U.S. energy production, given America’s massive appetite for oil. But McClatchy Newspapers has a great piece that suggests the possibility – as hard as this is to believe for some people – of energy independence for the United States.
Here’s the key paragraph:
“It may surprise many, but in less than a decade, the U.S. could pass its 1970s peak as an oil and natural gas producer. If that happens — and many analysts think it’s possible — the U.S. would edge past Saudi Arabia and Russia to become the world’s top energy producer.”
The game-changer is the Marcellus Shale formation which stretches underground through several Eastern states and extends to Ohio. It contains the second-largest natural gas deposits in the world, behind only Iran’s South Pars-North Dome gas field in the Persian Gulf, according to McClatchey’s piece, written by Kevin G. Hall.
In Pennsylvania, where natural gas production is booming, a number of new power plants are in the works in the Northeast that won’t need oil or coal to operate.
Here’s another key point in the story: “Forecaster IHS Global Insight projects that the abundant supply will lower natural gas prices, reduce electricity costs by an average of 10 percent nationwide and boost industrial production by 2.9 percent by 2017, as manufacturers enjoy cost savings. Natural gas also is likely to displace a lot of heating oil in the Northeast.”
Of course, the projections depend on a steady supply of oil from Mexico and Canada, a continued move toward electric-battery cars and other products, higher mileage standards for gas-powered vehicles, and more alternative fuel supplies.
And one potential roadblock: fracking. McClatchey reports that the people of Northeast Pennsylvania worry about polluted groundwater, but they’re also giddy about all the jobs that are coming their way.
To read the full story, click here.
