Natural Gas, Ukraine, Russia and the Crimea

This Is The Gas Pipeline Map That Shows Why The Crisis In Ukraine Affects All Of Europe

MICHAEL KELLEY Monday March 3, 2014 1112 central standard USA    

If you question the strategic location of Ukraine, check out this map that Agence France-Presse made last in December — two months before protesters in Kiev forced President Viktor Yanukovych out of office.

Russia has now invaded the strategic Baltic Sea peninsula of Crimea, and markets are spookedat the possibility that Russian troops that are being built up on the border could enter eastern Ukraine.

As the international tug-of-war for Ukraine continues, the tension involving economic relations in the region — especially regarding gas flow from Russia to both Ukraine and Europe — will increase.

Germany is perhaps the best example of this, as described by Noah Barkin of Reuters: “Heavily dependent on Russian gas and closer to Moscow than any other leading western nation, Germany faces a major policy dilemma as the Ukraine crisis descends into a Cold War-style confrontation of tit-for-tat threats and ultimatums.”

Follow Business Insider Australia on Facebook and Twitter

ExxonMobil study US Shale Gas Potential

permalink here: http://www.exxonmobilperspectives.com/2012/01/06/study-sums-up-the-extraordinary-performance-and-potential-of-u-s-shale-gas/?gclid=CLGVnO3MrrcCFVQV7AodyiUABA

Study sums up the extraordinary performance – and potential – of U.S. shale gas

January 6, 2012 | Posted by Ken Cohen

• $76 billion share of U.S. GDP.
• $33 billion in capital investments made.
• $18.6 billion in federal, state and local government tax and federal royalty revenues.
• 600,000 jobs supported.

And that was just in 2010.

These impressive stats sum up the economic contributions of U.S. shale gas production in 2010, according to a recent study from IHS Global Insight.

But even better outcomes are yet to come, the study’s findings show.

The U.S. shale gas industry will continue to be a major generator of jobs, government revenue and economic stimulus for decades as production continues to increase. Researchers estimated that nearly $2 trillion in capital investments will flow into the U.S. shale gas industry between 2010 and 2035.

The benefits of such massive investment will spread throughout communities, businesses, and governments around the country. The study examined recent increases in shale gas production and modeled the growth trend into the future, finding that shale gas will grow from 27 percent of U.S. natural gas production in 2010 to 60 percent in 2035. As a result:

• The jobs supported by the shale gas industry are expected to more than double by 2035, from 600,000 in 2010 to 1.6 million by 2035.
• The annual government tax revenues will more than triple, from $18.6 billion in 2010 to $57 billion in 2035.
• In total, the shale industry will generate more than $933 billion in federal, state and local government tax and federal royalty revenues over the next 25 years.
• The value added to the U.S. GDP will nearly triple, from more than $76 billion in 2010 to $231 billion in 2035.

Those are a lot of large numbers that can be hard to fully grasp. A few comparisons may help: 

• The $2 trillion in shale gas capital expenditures to be invested by 2035 is an amount that would reduce the current U.S. national debt by about 13 percent.
• The $933 billion in tax and royalty revenues from shale gas activity expected over the next 25 years is an amount that would come to close to paying for the 2011 Social Security and Medicaid budgets combined.
• The $231 billion in value added to the U.S. GDP by the shale gas industry in 2035 is an amount that’s higher than the GDP of the majority of the world’s countries in 2010, including Ireland, New Zealand and Denmark, just to name a few.

The U.S. shale gas industry is already a sizable contributor to the U.S. economy, and as these numbers show, the industry’s contributions will only continue to grow. But this growth is not pre-determined – and, in fact, can be undermined if counterproductive policies and regulations are enacted by policymakers at the federal and state levels. Government policies that promote access to U.S. energy supplies and increased investment are necessary for the industry to continue its pattern of growth – as are the industry’s actions to maintain safe operations throughout the country.

With a focus on effective policy and responsible operations, the shale gas industry can play a major role in U.S. economic recovery and growth.

Facts on Fracks @ Fracknation

FrackNation a documentary for Facts on Fracks

www.fracknation.com

JANUARY 22, 2013
@ 9 PM ET

A JOURNALIST'S SEARCH FOR THE FRACKING TRUTH

WELCOME TO OUR NEW WEBSITE!

Thanks for visiting. FrackNation is the film that will tell the truth about fracking. Our new website is designed to provide the most up to date information about the...Read More

Show me the Shale Money

Eagle Ford Investing

 BY YASMIN GHAREMANI 

Some days the price of his stocks swing like a drunk in a bar fight. But Bruce Vanderveen keeps his cool.

A few weeks ago, the 63-year-old semi-retired Florida resident put $2,000 intoMagnum Hunter Resources Corp. and Carrizo Oil & Gas Inc. — investments he considers speculative but interesting. Both companies are producing in the Eagle Ford Shale, one of the hottest unconventional oil-and-gas plays today. Houston-based Magnum has 24,000 net acres in Eagle Ford; Carrizo, also headquartered in Houston, has 46,000 net acres.

As oil prices have slid in the past few weeks, so have the valuations of Magnum and Carrizo — down 12 percent to 14 percent since Vanderveen got in. But he’s not rattled.

In fact, if the price of oil falls even further — say, below $82 a barrel — Vanderveen plans to bargain shop, doubling his current positions and buying into a couple of larger, more stable companies.

Such is the lure of the Eagle Ford.

Vanderveen, who is also invested in North Dakota’s famous Bakken Shale, called the Eagle Ford “a driller’s paradise” in an article he wrote for the investment site Seeking Alpha in April. “I read that it’s cheaper to produce in he Eagle Ford than the Bakken, and that’s what got me interested,” he says.

He’s not the only one turning his attention to the Eagle Ford. Colorado-based research firm IHS reported in July that the Eagle Ford is a contender for the best shale oil play in the U.S., with drilling results so far beating the Bakken. Its South Texas location is also blessed with better weather and proximity to Gulf Coast refineries. “It’s just got the best economics of any of the shale oil plays,” says Dan Steffens, president of the Energy Prospectus Group, a Houston-based investor network. Many retail investors are now looking for ways to cash in on the region’s good fortunes.

Continue reading 

http://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/news/2012/11/13/show-me-the-money-eagle-ford-shale.html?page=all

Obama Pays off Greenies for Voter Support

WASHINGTON (November 9, 2012) — The Interior Department today moved to protect millions of acres of sensitive Western lands from oil shale and tar sands exploration, the Natural Resources Defense Council said.

“By significantly reducing the acreage of wilderness potentially available for leasing, Secretary Salazar is laying out a creative, thoughtful and more responsible approach in managing some of our most precious resources,” said Bobby McEnaney, senior lands analyst at NRDC.

The department's decision reverses plans issued in the waning days of the Bush administration that opened more than two million acres in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming to destructive exploration of oil shale and tar sands—with virtually no environmental safeguards.

Salazar's decision effectively screens off an additional 1.6 million acres of wilderness-quality lands, as well as lands with critical wildlife habitat, from such exploitation, thus significantly reducing the acreage available for commercial leasing.

Oil shale, which should not be confused with natural gas derived from shale formations, is a solid-state organic-rich, sedimentary rock, found largely in the Western United States. Its exploration requires massive amounts of electricity, often from coal-fired power plants that spew a smorgasbord of pollutants, including carbon dioxide, that fuels climate change. Oil shale production can generate more than twice the amount of carbon pollution than conventional gasoline.

"Seeking more and ever dirtier fuels is not the way to a clean energy future that Americans want and deserve. Rather, we need to accelerate investments in clean, renewable sources energy that are good for our economy and good for our heath and the health of our planet," McEnaney said.

What a bunch of crap, Natural Gas, "Is a Clean Burning, Efficient, Energy Source", we have abundant supplies.....

Eagle Ford Shale Economic Impact (Gonzales, DeWitt Co's)

via Gonzales Cannon Newspaper

By Dave Mundy/manager@gonzalescannon.com
Posted November 1, 2012 - 8:20am

A new study estimates the economic impact of the Eagle Ford Shale on Gonzales and DeWitt counties was more than $3.3 billion in 2011 — and within 10 years that number will skyrocket to more than $14 billion.

The Center for Community and Business Research at The University of Texas at San Antonio Institute for Economic Development (UTSA) performed an economic study of 14 counties in the Eagle Ford Shale area that portrays a detailed image of the challenges and opportunities emerging from drilling and production activities in South Texas.

In 2011, the companies operating in the region had significant impacts in the 14-county area and in the surrounding counties.

These impacts translated into more than $19.2 billion in output; approximately $10.5 billion in gross regional product; $211 million in local government revenues; $312 million in state revenues; and 38,000 full-time jobs.

The study projects that by the year 2021, the Eagle Ford Shale could produce close to $62.2 billion in output and up to $34 billion in gross regional products.

Gonzales and DeWitt were two of the counties surveyed in the study, and the researchers note that both counties can expect massive economic impact over the next decade as the oil and gas field comes fully on-line.

The researchers noted a direct impact in 2011 of some $1.79 billion in Gonzales County and $1.63 billion in DeWitt County.

For Gonzales County, that number included a direct impact of some $1.5 billion in output, nearly $165 million in payroll and a total gross county product output of $892 million.

By 2021, the study suggests, the direct impact on Gonzales County would include $5.6 billion in output, a gross county product of nearly $3 billion, and oilfield-related payroll of more than $32 million.

DeWitt County’s numbers are similar, with a 2011 direct impact of $1.4 billion in output, nearly $800 million in gross county product and $163 million in payroll. Those numbers are expected to go up to $6.7 billion in output, $488 million in payroll and a gross county product of more than $4 billion.

The study also judges indirect and induced impacts because of the oilfield, as well as estimated tax revenue to local governments.

It is that local government tax revenue which may see the sharpest increase because of the Eagle Ford.

Gonzales County’s 2011 estimated local government revenue created because of the shale oil formation was $26.9 million; by 2021, that number is expected to be $114.4 million. In DeWitt County, those numbers ran $22.2 million in 2011 and are projected at $176.8 million by 2021.

The study also notes that more than 7,000 new jobs are expected to be created in the two counties diretcly and indirectly as a result of the development.

The Center for Community and Business Research at The University of Texas at San Antonio Institute for Economic Development (UTSA) also performed a workforce analysis for the 20 counties within the Eagle Ford Shale (EFS). Each of these counties have witnessed an increased supply of EFS-related jobs within certain industries and requiring specific job training.

Direct, indirect and induced economic impacts were examined for each of the counties in the 20-county region to determine workforce impact. Direct impacts primarily consist of the actual production and employment by firms operating directly in the EFS. Indirect impacts include the operational and personnel expenditure made by suppliers, or inter-industry transactions spurred by the direct economic activity. Induced impacts include income flows created when workers spend money on various goods such as food, housing, and other products or services in the counties the counties under analysis.

Researchers noted that development of the Eagle Ford Shale has distinct phases, during which individual industries will experience varying levels of labor demand and evolving types of labor demanded.

Thus, education and training requirements for workers will need to remain flexible enough to accommodate the vacillating needs of industry. For example, during the exploration phase counties will see a rise in the need for occupations dealing with mineral leasing, site construction/management, drilling rig support, and material transport.

As companies shift into the production and processing phase of operations, they require a workforce composed of business management, administrative support and the processing of gas, oil and condensates occupations.

Shale Exploration News Updates