Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by P.G. on July 25, 2009 at 11:02

We need all our energy resources!
Swapping out coal for NG won't solve our independence from imports.
NG would be better if used as a transportation fuel to reduce imported oil.

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Permalink Reply by sesport on July 25, 2009 at 11:11

PG - The 3 areas of highest consumption of ng are residential use, electric power generation and industrial use. Transportation is minimal. (See attachment below.)

If we don't start using it, prices won't go back up.

If prices don't go back up, it ain't worth drill for & producing.

If it doesn't get produced, it won't get put into use to include transportation & industry (where petroleum is also used.)

Then we're still stuck like Chuck importing what we need.

:0)

Attachments:

• natgasuse_edited-1.gif, 10 KB

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Permalink Reply by P.G. on July 25, 2009 at 12:28

Yes! This is a problem.
More pressure needs to put on our leaders to do what it takes to get NG as a transportation fuel online.
T-Boone is doing a good job but we all need to be asking our representatives why they haven't been more proactive in displacing imported oil with NG. I don't like the government needing to spend anymore money but investing in NG infrastructure would eventually pay for itself in the long run.
We all would be better off if the US produced all it's own energy.

Trading NG for Coal will only be trading one problem for another. Promotion of NG to be marketed for transportation would be good for everyone. Could be the next boom like information technology was for the 90s.
That boom turned out surplus revenue for the government. NG could do the same for us now if the cards were played right.

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Permalink Reply by LP on July 25, 2009 at 12:36

We need to ask our representatives these simple questions:

How to end America's dependence on foreign oil?
Answer - Natural Gas
How to reduce carbon emissions in automobiles, trucks, buses and trains?
Answer - Natural Gas
How to stabilize America's economy, create American jobs, keep 700 Billion America dollars per year in America?
Answer - Natural Gas

And then there is the question:
How to end America’s deadly coal addiction

How hard is this quiz?

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Permalink Reply by Mac Davis on July 25, 2009 at 20:12

Worldwide fossil fuel reserves, listed in billion barrels of oil equivalent.

Oil: 1300
Gas: 1100
Coal 4400

Burn the gas now if you want. I can use the royalties. We'll burn the coal when we run out of oil and gas. There are no environmentalists with empty gas tanks or electric brownouts.

I don't think these numbers include "shale oil," which is neither shale nor oil, nor "tar sands".

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Permalink Reply by w.r. frank on July 26, 2009 at 2:38

Hi Mac,

Can you give a link to a source for this. Is it dated and does it take take into account the recent upward revision of NG reserves?

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Permalink Reply by Mac Davis on July 26, 2009 at 10:22

I got it off wikipedia, but I checked a few other sources and they were somewhat consistent. I suspect it's dated.

All these total world reserve numbers are pretty wild guesses anyway, but I think you still have an idea of the relative size. The highest inaccuracy, IMHO, comes from deciding what's exploitable. If you count "oil shale", the oil numbers go WAY up. I have some vague recollection that "oil shale" nearly equals or even exceeds the amount of "regular" oil. Those numbers vary wildly depending on what percent of the total "oil" you assume you can get out with technology that hasn't even been developed yet.

Coal numbers are a bit squirrely too. Even in Powder River, the depth varies quite a bit, and it's not clear how much will be practical to mine. (There's still a HECK of a lot of coal out there.

Of course, oil and gas "exploitable" reserves estimates are pretty uncertain, too.

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