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ARCTIC NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE (ANWR)
AND ENERGY PRODUCTION -The Debate Continues
During the last several months we
have seen natural gas prices soar causing heating costs to set new
modern day highs. Although North Dakotans didn't feel the pinch,
electricity prices in many market places also increased dramatically
to pay for the natural gas being used to generate electricity.
Sadly, we are looking at an
approaching summer when gasoline prices are expected to increase to as
much as $2.00 a gallon in many marketplaces, according to an April 11,
story in U.S.A. Today. Some forecasters are predicting gasoline may
even reach $3.00 per gallon in some limited areas across the country
if "all the ifs go bad at the same time".
You may recall that the last issue of
"Shareholder News" contained an article discussing supply
and demand imbalance that has caused natural gas prices to increase
this past winter. In this issue we discuss one item that could have an
impact on natural gas and gasoline supplies in North Dakota for years
to come.
Presently, some 17 million acres of
northeastern Alaska are permanently off-limits to oil and gas
exploration and production as the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR)
regardless of the U.S. Geological Study that estimates as many as 16
billion barrels of oil could be recovered. This would be enough oil to
replace our nation's imports from Saudi Arabia for some 30 years!
Geologists also predict that large quantities of recoverable natural
gas exist in Northern Alaska that could also help America solve its
energy crisis.
It is important to understand that
only the coastal plain of the ANWR - some 1.5 million acres -- will be
open for oil and gas exploration and production activities. Should oil
and gas be discovered in the coastal plain, it is estimated that only
2,000 acres of the entire study area will be affected. During the many
years of developing oil and gas in the Arctic, methods have improved
and new techniques have been discovered to do a better job with less
land. If the giant Prudhoe Bay oilfield was discovered and developed
using today's techniques, the arctic footprint would be 64 % smaller.
Presently, the USA imports about 58 %
of daily petroleum needs. Bringing ANWR oil production into the lower
48 should reduce imports to about 50 %, still a significant quantity.
For historical reference, you may recall that the energy crisis of the
1970's was triggered when the nation was importing only about 30- 35 %
of its daily needs.
America also imports some 13 % of
today's natural gas needs, and the majority of those imports come from
Canada. Interestingly, Canada is currently exploring and developing
wells in the Beaufort Sea just a little east of the ANWR.
There is no better time than right
now to implement a national energy policy built around exploring and
producing our nation's natural resources instead of importing energy
to meet our needs. If you agree, contact your Senators and let them
know your opinion.
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