State of Oil and Gas: We're Creating the Jobs
Someone asked me the other day to name the first president I voted for. My answer: “Abraham Lincoln.”
That’s a joke, of course, but it does illustrate a point: At 85, I’ve witnessed a lot of history. I’ve spent 60 years of it in the oil and gas industry, and while I’ve seen a lot of ups and downs in that sector, the state of the oil and gas industry has never been stronger. Less than a decade ago, a pervasive theory marked the industry, and it was one of global “peak oil.” I was a member of that club, believing U.S. oil production had “peaked” in 1970 and were in irreversible decline here, and elsewhere.
How wrong we were. The industry, driven by the innovation that marks private enterprise, has – once again – innovated.
With stunning technological advances (chiefly the combination of fracking and horizontal drilling), we now have more energy reserves that any other nation on earth.
Not only that, we have the cheapest in the world, too.
Today, the oil and gas business is the most dynamic industry in America. Unfortunately, they are still targeted by Washington, DC, as villains and increasingly blamed for everything from profiteering to earthquakes. If you want to blame that industry for anything, blame it for creating too many jobs.
Consider these statistics:
That’s a joke, of course, but it does illustrate a point: At 85, I’ve witnessed a lot of history. I’ve spent 60 years of it in the oil and gas industry, and while I’ve seen a lot of ups and downs in that sector, the state of the oil and gas industry has never been stronger. Less than a decade ago, a pervasive theory marked the industry, and it was one of global “peak oil.” I was a member of that club, believing U.S. oil production had “peaked” in 1970 and were in irreversible decline here, and elsewhere.
How wrong we were. The industry, driven by the innovation that marks private enterprise, has – once again – innovated.
Not only that, we have the cheapest in the world, too.
Today, the oil and gas business is the most dynamic industry in America. Unfortunately, they are still targeted by Washington, DC, as villains and increasingly blamed for everything from profiteering to earthquakes. If you want to blame that industry for anything, blame it for creating too many jobs.
Consider these statistics:
- The nation’s lowest unemployment rate – 2.7 percent – is in North Dakota, home of the Baaken oil field.
- Oilfield employment is so high in North Dakota that housing is in short supply, with rents in Williston, a city of only about 15,000 people, topping those in New York City and Los Angeles.
- Midland, Texas, an oil and gas hub, has become one of the wealthiest towns in North America.
- The oil and gas industry is now responsible for 10 million jobs, both direct and indirect.
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| What did you leave for us? Just pickens? |
How do we deal with such an intellectual feather-weight who cannot even discern between two simple concepts of finite and infinite? Answer: here's what the top scientists would tell him:
Did you think this crazy villain would get it now? Of course not - its just too far beyond the interests and cognitive functions of prophets (sic).
Platinum Wealth Partners
April 10, 2014
