SHELL's net profit record 9 Billion

[More Power]

Exploration for new oil is controlled by the enviros, not by profit margin. The billion dollar Alaska pipeline was built with corporate money more than 30 years ago, when crude oil and pump prices were a fraction of what they are now.

I've read where big-rig truckers living on the southern border are traveling into Mexico, where they have been reported to save up to $500 on a fillup.

Capping profits is almost always a bad idea. Perhaps the public should charge more for the oil found on public lands.... I'm just saying...

Jim

[JeepSJ]

I think everyone can understand the cost at the pump when world market-priced imported oil is at $120+ per barrel.

According to a recent article in the Detroit Free Press, "Crude oil prices account for 72% of the price of a gallon of gasoline, with the rest coming from refining, transporting and taxes".

Now, what I don't understand is, what about oil pumped from United States public lands and territories? Oil pumped from U.S. public lands (oil that belongs to you and me) should not be priced at world market levels. It should be priced at U.S. market levels - certainly way less than $120.00/barrel.

According to Brian Schwitzer, Governor of Montana, there is enough coal in the U.S. that, when converted to petroleum, would replace all imported oil for the next 200 years (at current import levels of 4 Billion barrels annually). Current coal/oil conversion costs are between $40 & $50 per barrel. We could be energy independent within a few years, once all of the syn fuel plants came online. OPEC be damned.

Global warming and its related carbon tax nonsense could change everything. That's why large-scale coal conversion isn't being done as we speak (There is already one small plant in North Dakota and another that currently supplies the U.S. military). The investors don't know what will develop with upcoming carbon tax laws, and won't invest till they know how bad Congress will hit them with new carbon (CO2) taxes.

Congress is proposing $18,000,000,000 in new energy taxes..... Congress at work for the American people...

Jim

One big problem that we have is that we can't refine much of the oil that we pull out of Alaska, which is why we sell that off to Asia. We must buy the stuff that we can refine on the open market.

We need new refineries that can refine the stuff that we are pulling out of our own sources. We have not had a new refinery built in nearly 30 years and existing plants are running at nearly 100% capacity, which means shortages if any one goes down for maintenance or breakage.

Who is to blame for those problems? Not the oil companies. Their profits would soar because their cost of production would come way down (and hopefully the price of fuels would follow).

[More Power]

One big problem that we have is that we can't refine much of the oil that we pull out of Alaska, which is why we sell that off to Asia. We must buy the stuff that we can refine on the open market.

There have been conflicting reports about whether AK crude gets exported to Asia. I read that the oil companies do sell some of it to Asia, and consider it a trade for the oil they import from the bad guys, where it is delivered to the East coast.

I wonder what it costs to extract AK oil and what they sell it for... In my opinion, no U.S. oil should be exported.

Back in the early 80's, it was reported that Saudi Arabia's cost of extraction was $4/barrel. When world market price soared at that time, it reached the high $30's/barrel. When Reagan began promoting and lobbying for a major coal/oil gasification program, OPEC dropped oil to a world market price of $9/barrel to prevent the U.S. from economically converting coal.

The U.S. could do it again. Only this time, follow through, and create energy independence...

Jim

[93GMCSierra]

I seen on the news that most refineries are shutting down production because there is less demand in the us. They say its getting too costly to keep up production when less fuel is consumed, seems like a scam to me though to keep supply lower then demand.

[JeepSJ]

There have been conflicting reports about whether AK crude gets exported to Asia. I read that the oil companies do sell some of it to Asia, and consider it a trade for the oil they import from the bad guys, where it is delivered to the East coast.

I wonder what it costs to extract AK oil and what they sell it for... In my opinion, no U.S. oil should be exported.

Back in the early 80's, it was reported that Saudi Arabia's cost of extraction was $4/barrel. When world market price soared at that time, it reached the high $30's/barrel. When Reagan began promoting and lobbying for a major coal/oil gasification program, OPEC dropped oil to a world market price of $9/barrel to prevent the U.S. from economically converting coal.

The U.S. could do it again. Only this time, follow through, and create energy independence...

Jim

But we would need someone in office who actually had a pair.