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Originally Posted by Hatuey  Apparently the soonest would be within 3-4 years. |
And that's the SOONEST. Like, the estimate given from the most optimistic proponents of drilling. A more realistic estimate is 6-8 years.
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Originally Posted by Hatuey Now this isn't bad but it seems to do away with the argument that we need the relief now. Not to mention we wouldn't even be using these sources at full capacity until somewhere in the next 2 decades. How big would such a drop be? Cents? Dollars? These are all questions which the proponents of offshore drilling can not answer even though they are directly related to what they are proposing. |
Using the most optimistic figures, the United States has about 1.7 trillion barrels of oil beneath our land and off our shores. Using the most conservative figures, the ENTIRE WORLD has about 1.1 quadrillion barrels of oil. That means that America could produce, at most, 0.15% of the total world supply (and lower the cost of oil by about 0.15%).
Note that this is using the most OPTIMISTIC figures possible...and is before taking into account that not all oil is created equal, and American oil is simply harder and more expensive to drill than Saudi oil. It also does not factor in the reality that the Middle East has gotten pretty good at producing oil, whereas we're newcomers to the game. In reality, the cost of oil would almost certainly drop MUCH LESS than 0.15%.
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Originally Posted by Hatuey The second reason I don't believe drilling in ANWR ASAP will bring gas prices down is because of Canada. Yes, that ice cube above us. Canada's Alberta province has built a pretty solid economy around oil but yet gas prices in Canada are actually higher then those in the U.S. - How can this be? How can Canada be paying more for oil when they have a fountain of it smack in the middle of the country? It seems a bit contradictory that they'd paying more even though they don't have the demand we do and a lot of supply. |
That's more because of higher taxes, than of any problem with their oil production. If you ignore the taxes, I think Canadians and Americans pay approximately the same on average.
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Originally Posted by Hatuey Will offshore drilling bring immediate relief? |
Of course not.