Originally Posted by Lightdemon

The type of oil that we have in the US are not in liquid form, as the type found in Saudi Arabia.

The amount of time and money spent to convert our oil, that are in shales and in sands, are not economically beneficial. One can argue that the amount of energy used to convert US oil into usable oil may not be worth the trouble, except in very extreme circumstances (such as a last resort). Essentially we're handicapped because of this. Therefore, it is more difficult for us to compete in the world market in terms of pricing.

This isn't a simple supply-demand relationship. It is a globalized market, where easily exploitable production takes the lead in competition.

As well, there is concern of the amount of pollution from mining and converting oil shale. Groundwater need to be lowered in order to mine the shale, and that affects surrounding forests as well as arable lands (for farming). Solid waste (known as Semicoke) from converting shale into crude can be toxic and also requires additional land for disposal. Also Carbon Dioxide emissions from oil shale production is higher than any other type of oil production. Lastly, and regretably, the oil shale industry is not efficient in terms of oil production.

If you're talking about off-shore drilling then that would require me to give you a different type of response.