Month: March 2022

Approve Our Permits: US Oil Industry Responds After Biden Cuts Imports From Russia White House blames Russia, faults oil industry, for record high gas prices

The Epoch Times

‘Approve Our Permits’

By Nathan Worcester March 8, 2022 Updated: March 8, 2022

“Cut the crap and approve our permits.”

On March 8, while President Joe Biden announced a ban on Russian oil and gas imports, regular gasoline at one BP gas station on Chicago’s South Side was nearly $5 a gallon.

“$25 is only giving you half a tank,” Dacia, a customer who was buying a few dollars of fuel, told The Epoch Times. “I probably have to go to Indiana to find somewhere else cheaper. People don’t really have that much money.”

On March 7, average national gas prices had shattered the record set in 2008, reaching a new high of $4.104, according to GasBuddy. That number surged even higher on March 8, reaching $4.173, according to AAA.

“Gas is now officially more expensive than the movie ‘I Am Legend’ imagined it would be during the apocalypse,” PragerU’s Taylor Trandahl wrote on Twitter.

Patrick De Haan, GasBuddy’s head of petroleum analysis, said, “It’s a dire situation and won’t improve any time soon. GasBuddy now expects the yearly national average to rise to its highest ever recorded.”

The Energy Information Administration’s (EIA’s) latest Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) also reflects the costly new normal.

While EIA’s February STEO projected Brent crude, a key international benchmark, would average $83 per barrel in 2022 before falling to $68 per barrel in 2023, its March 8 STEO revised those estimates upward to $105.22 in 2022 and $88.98 in 2023.

Brent crude hit $139 per barrel on March 7. Some traders are betting that oil will reach $200 per barrel during March.

The most recent uptick in prices has to do with the Russia–Ukraine war, according to De Haan and other experts. Yet experts who spoke with The Epoch Times said prices had been increasing long before that conflict began.

“Russia’s war against Ukraine has added a premium to the price of crude on the global market of $15 to $20 per barrel, and promises to add more if the conflict is extended. But the oil price was $37 per barrel when Biden was elected and had already risen by $60 before Russia’s invasion due to supply and demand factors,” David Blackmon, editor of SHALE Magazine and co-host of the radio show In The Oil Patch, told The Epoch Times in an email.

“The fact is the market has been under-supplied for months now, and Biden has contributed to that greatly by his efforts to hamstring the U.S. oil industry. That’s the truth.”

Shubham Garg, founder and CEO of White Tundra Investments, told The Epoch Times, “The geopolitical risk and fear in the market does play a role. However, I think the bigger problem is a fundamental problem—we were already in an undersupplied market with a very low inventory.

“American domestic production and Canadian production have been unfairly targeted.”

Karr Ingham, a petroleum economist with the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers (TAEP), told The Epoch Times that a slow recovery from the COVID-19 production downturn partly accounted for the long-range rise in prices—a conclusion similar to that of EIA Administrator Steve Nalley, who testified before the Senate in November 2021 that rising oil prices are driven by global petroleum consumption outpacing production.

“The question is, why weren’t we growing production on the heels of that much faster than we were?” Ingham asked. “I think it’s quite safe to say that the political, legislative, and regulatory environment is openly hostile, or has been, to growing or re-establishing U.S. domestic crude oil production.

“It’s quite disingenuous to simply blame our current price levels on what Russia did, because we had a $90 base of crude oil pricing in place before this happened.”

Yet when the Biden administration has been pressed on rising gasoline prices, which have trended upward since November 2020, it has blamed Russia and exempted its own policies from fault.

At a March 4 press conference, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters, “The reason why the price of gas is going up is not because of steps the president has taken. They are President [Vladimir] Putin is invading Ukraine, and that is creating a great deal of instability in the global marketplace.”

At a March 7 press conference, Psaki doubled down. Asked whether post-pandemic supply chain factors were already a driver of increased gas prices before the invasion, she said, “The anticipated continued increase … is a direct result of the invasion of Ukraine.”

“Federal policies are not limiting the supplies of oil and gas,” she later said at the same press conference.

In his Tuesday press conference announcing the Russian energy restrictions, Biden said, “It’s simply not true that my administration or policies are holding back domestic energy production.”

He cited the fact that almost 90 percent of onshore oil production doesn’t occur on federal land, as well as the fact that oil and gas firms have more than 9,000 unused permits.

In a Fact Check released on March 7, the Institute for Energy Research (IER) pointed out that oil exploration on federal lands rapidly declined under the Obama administration.

“The reality is that federal lands vastly underperform on oil and gas production versus state and private lands because the federal government owns the majority of the mineral estate,” the IER wrote.

“You can hold a lease without deciding to develop or produce it based on the economics of that lease. Companies have always made decisions based on lease economics,” Ingham said of TAEP. “To suggest they’re not going to offer more leases until companies drill what they have now—that’s making decisions on behalf of companies that the administration is neither qualified nor authorized to make.”

Tim Stewart, president of the U.S. Oil and Gas Association, had a straightforward response to Biden’s March 8 comments.

“Cut the crap and approve our permits.”

Biden administration officials are making overtures to Venezuela, Iran, and Saudi Arabia in the hopes that those countries will boost production and reduce oil prices.

“Venezuela has probably some of the dirtiest oil in the world,” Garg said. “Even if they remove the sanctions, that industry is in such a collapsed state that it’s going to require hundreds of billions of dollars and expertise from America.”

“Higher oil and gas prices make electric vehicles and renewable energy more price competitive,” Blackmon said. “This is illustrated by the fact that officials like Pete Buttigieg continue to double down on that agenda as the ‘solution’ to our high gasoline price issue. That’s why you see him, Biden, and Kamala Harris advocate for more oil from Venezuela and Iran, but not from our own domestic industry.”

The Epoch Times has reached out to the Treasury Department to see if Biden’s ban on Russian oil and gas would still allow for energy-related “U-turn transactions,” as described by the U.S. Treasury Department in a March 2 statement on the sanctions on Russia. U-turn transactions would allow the United States to continue purchasing Russian oil and gas through a third-country financial institution.

 

Source: https://www.theepochtimes.com/mkt_app/approve-our-permits-us-oil-industry-responds-after-biden-cut-russian-gas_4322267.html

Biden’s failures by the numbers – energy costs, poll numbers tell the story

Fox News

Biden’s failures by the numbers – energy costs, poll numbers tell the story

Politics is inherently a game of numbers. As it sputters into year two, the Biden presidency has been defined by two troubling and related statistics: approval ratings and energy costs.

Let’s break down both. President Biden took office with the support of 55% of Americans. A recent ABC News/Washington Post survey puts that number at 37%.

Meanwhile, the national average for a gallon of gas was $2.42 in January 2021. Today, it’s topping $4 – an increase of 66% – while oil is trading at a 13-year high of $130 a barrel. Both numbers are poised to spike even higher as the war in Ukraine rages on.

Politics is inherently a game of numbers. As it sputters into year two, the Biden presidency has been defined by two troubling and related statistics: approval ratings and energy costs.

Let’s break down both. President Biden took office with the support of 55% of Americans. A recent ABC News/Washington Post survey puts that number at 37%.

Meanwhile, the national average for a gallon of gas was $2.42 in January 2021. Today, it’s topping $4 – an increase of 66% – while oil is trading at a 13-year high of $130 a barrel. Both numbers are poised to spike even higher as the war in Ukraine rages on.

Actions by the Biden administration have unquestionably decreased American energy supply. He has made it more difficult for energy producers to obtain new oil and gas leases and permits on federal lands and in the Gulf of Mexico. He has slowed down the permitting process of pipelines and energy infrastructure, including canceling the-oft-discussed Keystone XL pipeline. Biden has championed the green scheme at an unsustainable pace, pushing for half of all vehicles in this country to go electric by the end of the decade.

But the problem extends beyond just policies. It goes to priorities. Biden and crew have demonized energy producers as untrustworthy villains responsible for the problem.

In November, the President ordered an investigation by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) into, “anti-consumer behavior by oil and gas companies.” During a farcical Democrat-led House Oversight Committee hearing last fall, U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna D-Calif., had the gall to ask, “Are you embarrassed as an American company that your production is going up while European counterparts are going down?”

Khanna is correct on one point. Europeans have moved away from traditional sources of energy in favor of renewables. Germany moved to eliminate its nuclear and coal capabilities altogether. But when these green forms of energy fall short, it’s fossil fuels to the rescue. In fact, the European Union is the largest importer of natural gas in the world, with almost half (41%) coming from Russia.

In November, the President ordered an investigation by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) into, “anti-consumer behavior by oil and gas companies.” During a farcical Democrat-led House Oversight Committee hearing last fall, U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna D-Calif., had the gall to ask, “Are you embarrassed as an American company that your production is going up while European counterparts are going down?”

Khanna is correct on one point. Europeans have moved away from traditional sources of energy in favor of renewables. Germany moved to eliminate its nuclear and coal capabilities altogether. But when these green forms of energy fall short, it’s fossil fuels to the rescue. In fact, the European Union is the largest importer of natural gas in the world, with almost half (41%) coming from Russia.

Because of their ill-advised rush to go green, Putin holds the fate of Europe’s energy in his hands. If Khanna is looking for something to be embarrassed about, he should start there. No wonder the latest sham hearing targeting energy producers has been delayed for a second time.

Ironically, through its actions, the Biden administration demonstrates they know more energy supply is desperately needed. When pressed on consumers’ pain at the pump, they point to releasing barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Last fall, Biden authorized the release of 50 million barrels. This time, it was 30 million.

For context, the U.S. goes through 18 million barrels each day. Talk about re-arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Same with the silly one-time gas tax holidays proposed by vulnerable Democratic senators.

The administration has asked the Saudi Arabia-led OPEC to pump more oil. They are even traveling to Venezuela, a Russian ally with the largest oil reserves in the world, to explore re-starting negotiations. Trading oil with Iran is “on the table.” No word on how oil from the Middle East or brutal dictators is any better for the environment than domestic energy, and therein lies Biden’s true dilemma.

The president made many promises to the environmental left on his road to the White House. In return, the green industry shelled out a record-setting $11.1 million to his campaign. But now the cold hard reality of governing is colliding with pie-in-the-sky ideas.

It was no accident that Biden’s first State of the Union address was conspicuously light on climate talk, and not just because of the ongoing war in Ukraine. Green policies have driven energy prices up and Biden’s poll numbers down.

If he doesn’t reverse course soon, there is a third set of concerning numbers coming rapidly into view: the midterm elections. That should be a terrifying thought for every Democrat facing voters this fall.

Source: https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/biden-failures-energy-poll-numbers-colin-reed

House Democrats Block Bill to Approve Keystone XL Pipeline, Promote ‘American Energy Independence From Russia’

The Epoch Times

House Democrats Block Bill to Approve Keystone XL Pipeline, Promote ‘American Energy Independence From Russia’

House Democrats Block Bill to Approve Keystone XL Pipeline, Promote ‘American Energy Independence From Russia’

Matt Gaetz explains why he joined Democrats in opposition

By Nathan Worcester

March 2, 2022 Updated: March 3, 2022

Legislation promoting U.S. energy independence from Russia has been blocked by House Democrats.

House Republicans introduced the “American Independence from Russian Energy Act” on Feb. 28, a measure meant to authorize the Keystone XL pipeline, boost domestic oil and gas production, and prevent President Joe Biden’s executive branch agencies from halting energy leasing on federal land and water, among other provisions. Yet on March 1, the legislation was shot down in a 221–202 vote, almost entirely along partisan lines.

“Getting our pipelines expanded is huge,” Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.), ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee and a co-sponsor of the measure, told The Epoch Times. “We’re having to import Russian energy to the New England states because we don’t have pipelines that can carry Pennsylvania natural gas up there.”

U.S. crude oil imports from Russia more than doubled in 2021, rising to an average of 209,000 barrels per day from a daily average of roughly 76,000 per day barrels in 2020, according to data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), chair of the House Natural Resources Committee, didn’t respond to a request for comment by press time on his choice to vote down the legislation.

Republicans on the floor voiced near-unanimous support for the measure, with Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) describing U.S. reliance on Russian oil and petroleum products as “unconscionable.”

By contrast, Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) said Republicans “talk about energy independence, yet … are the ones who have consistently voted against and opposed green and renewable energy here at home, which is the fastest way to achieve real energy independence.”

The 220 Democrats who voted the legislation down were joined by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), who said the measure could open up the northwest Florida coast to drilling, potentially impeding military testing and related missions that take place east of the Military Mission Line.

Westerman told The Epoch Times that Gaetz’s objection was a “totally illegitimate concern.”

“I don’t know where he got the misinformation, but it talks about the Western Gulf [of Mexico],” he said. “It is not going to allow drilling around Florida.”

A spokesperson for Gaetz explained the congressman’s concerns to The Epoch Times.

Although the bill doesn’t specifically authorize drilling near Gaetz’s district, it keeps the president and his cabinet from freezing the new drilling lease sales on federal land or water. Any withdrawal of those federal holdings from drilling would have to be authorized by Congress.

The spokesperson said this language could be used to undermine a September 2020 memorandum from then-President Donald Trump extending the drilling moratorium off Florida’s northwest coast until 2032.

“The Congressionally approved moratorium is set to expire in June of 2022,” the spokesperson said, referring to the original Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act that made the area off-limits for drilling.

“It would be foolish to respond to Russia’s aggression by rendering America less capable to defeat Russia or anyone else,” the spokesperson said. “Protecting the Gulf Test Range is in America’s best interest.”

The spokesperson told The Epoch Times that Gaetz is on record as favoring more U.S. energy production to undercut Russia, drawing attention to a passage in Gaetz’s 2020 book, “Firebrand”:

“Asia’s largest consumer of energy, China, is right next to Asia’s largest producer, Russia. They are building bridges to one another that could well imperil the free world.

“We can beat Russia and other fossil fuel foes just by keeping the price of oil perpetually low.”

Westerman, who said he supports an “all of the above” energy strategy that includes oil, gas, nuclear, solar, and wind, pointed out that greenhouse gas emissions fell during the Trump administration.

“I don’t think Putin gives a rip about environmental goals, or anybody’s economy other than his own,” he said.

The legislation instructs the secretary of the interior to immediately restart the oil and gas lease sales required by the Mineral Leasing Act, which Biden first froze through Executive Order 14008 in January 2021.

In addition, it specifically instructs the secretary to hold at least four oil and gas lease sales in Wyoming, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Nevada, and “any other state in which there is land available for oil and natural gas leasing under the [Mineral Leasing] Act.”

The Epoch Times has reached out to three key bureaus and agencies of the Interior Department involved in mining and drilling authorization—the Bureau of Land Management, the Ocean Energy Management Bureau, and the Office of Surface Reclamation and Enforcement—but didn’t receive a response by press time.

“Democrats blocking the Act yesterday from even being considered demonstrates how unserious they are about truly addressing the crisis in Ukraine,” Kathleen Sgamma, president of the Western Energy Alliance, a nonprofit energy industry association, told The Epoch Times in an email.

“We have the energy resources to starve Putin of revenue and lower prices for Americans if the president would just take action within his power now. For example, the government is holding up hundreds of federal permits in the Permian Basin, America’s most prolific oil region. Most are ready to go but are being held up for more climate change analysis.”

Representatives for the U.S. branch of Fridays for Future, the international climate movement started by Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg, didn’t respond to a request for comment on the legislation by press time.

Source: https://www.theepochtimes.com/mkt_app/house-democrats-block-bill-to-approve-keystone-xl-pipeline-promote-american-energy-independence-from-russia_4312298.html