Former CIA Director John Deutch says that America’s hopeless dependence on imported oil and natural gas “is a thing of the past.” Writing in the Wall Street Journal this week, Deutch says that when it comes to energy, the U.S. has undergone a complete about-face. Instead of being subject to the political whims of OPEC, America has the capacity to stand on its own two feet:
Most energy experts now project that North America will have the capacity to be a net exporter of oil and natural gas by the end of this decade.
What’s behind this good news? Deutch credits innovative technology that has been developed over the last decade.
This new production depends on advances in directional drilling and hydraulic fracturing, the process that injects enormous amounts of fluid—90% water, nearly 10% sand, and less than 1% chemical additives—into the ground below the water table, typically at depths greater than one kilometer, and laterally over distances of several kilometers.
There’s only one catch to this breakthrough, and Deutch is quick to point this out:
Demand for natural gas has not kept up with the phenomenal growth in supply. That’s indicated by the extremely low current price and the thousands of recently developed unconventional natural gas wells that are shut-in. Unconventional natural gas production from “dry” wells (those that don’t produce useful petroleum liquid products) is at a virtual standstill.
This is exactly why Boone Pickens has been advocating greater use of natural gas as a transportation fuel for fleets and heavy trucks. At the heart of the Pickens Plan is a recognition that America has a super abundance of natural gas. But this surplus will only benefit Americans if it is put to use domestically.
One thing is for sure: exporting our natural gas to China and other countries won’t do anything to decrease our dependence on OPEC oil.
Read more HERE.