We say opportunities for oil and natural gas development in federally controlled areas – onshore and offshore – have been limited. Some are saying that’s false. Let’s look at the facts.

Claim: 70 percent of undiscovered oil and natural gas on federal lands is available for leasing and development.

Fact: 83 percent of areas controlled by the federal government are closed to oil and natural gas development.

What we have here is some sleight of hand with terminology. We’ll use the offshore situation to illustrate. During last year’s State of the Union address the president said he was directing the administration to open up more than 75 percent of America’s offshore resources for development. The percentage figure referred to undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and natural gas r... more »

Main points from White House energy advisor Heather Zichal in an update of the administration’s positions on energy and environmental policy at an event this week hosted by the Center for Strategic & International Studies:

• Safe, reliable, affordable energy is the lifeblood of America’s economy and is fundamentally linked to U.S. security in the world.
• America’s energy narrative has been rewritten – chiefly due to innovations that have launched the shale oil and natural gas revolution – from one of scarcity to one of abundance.
• The administration’s chief economic goal is to create more middle-class jobs, and energy is and can continue to be a key driver of job and economic growth.

There’s much to like there. The question is how to sustain and accelerate America’s new energ... more »

The White House is continuing the drum beat for higher taxes on oil and natural gas companies – oddly, as a reaction to higher gasoline prices. Press Secretary Jay Carney this week:

“Anybody fill up their gas tank this weekend?  Think the oil and gas companies can maybe afford to give up their taxpayer – special interest break?  I think most Americans would say yes.”

Let’s think this through. Gasoline prices have been rising – mostly because of underlying increases in the cost of crude oil due to higher global demand for oil – and the White House press secretary’s response is to connect gasoline prices with a tired proposal to raise taxes on the producers of gasoline.

Now, you don’t have to be a Harvard professor to recognize that raising taxes on the companies that find and de... more »

Gasoline prices have been climbing. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports:

The average U.S. retail price for regular motor gasoline has risen 45 cents per gallon since the start of the year, reaching $3.75 per gallon on February 18. Between January 1 and February 19, the price of Brent crude, the waterborne light sweet crude grade that drives the wholesale price of gasoline sold in most U.S. regions, rose about $6 per barrel, or about 15 cents per gallon.

By far the largest factor in gasoline pricing is the cost of crude oil – and the cost of crude has been rising since mid-December, as this chart shows:

There’s lots of detail from EIA here on the factors affecting global crude markets – chiefly increases in global demand as economies pick up steam after t... more »

While the White House talks again about raising taxes on oil and natural gas companies, let’s look at a chart that captures the starkly different outcomes – in terms of revenue for government – from two policy paths: higher energy taxes vs. increased energy development:

You read it right: The difference between the two policy choices, in cumulative dollars for government from now until 2030, is more than $1 trillion.

According to a 2011 study by Wood Mackenzie, increased oil and natural gas activity under pro-access policies would generate an additional $800 billion in cumulative revenue for government by 2030. The chart puts into perspective the size of these accumulating revenues – enough to fund entire federal departments at various points along the timeline. By contrast, Wood... more »