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Interstate oil and gas compact commission meeting ends today

Well, I’ve got my first Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission annual meeting under my belt.

 

Based on what I’ve heard, this is what I think oil and natural gas producers want the country to know about the job they do:

 

They want the country to know the industry faces increasing competition from large foreign, government-backed oil firms that have access to all the latest technology and can squeeze them out of lucrative areas that could provide affordable energy to consumers here in the

U.S.

 

Clarence P. Cazalot Jr., chairman and chief executive officer of Marathon Oil Corp., addressed the issue Monday during the meeting’s keynote address.

 

“Quite simply, securing America’s energy future is one of the most serious … issues of our time,” Cazalot said. “But notice  — I am referring to energy security — not to energy independence.

 

“While I do believe energy independence, in the long term, is both desirable and achievable, in the near term, I don’t believe it is possible, nor in fact, is it desirable.

 

“Indeed, calling for energy independence today, particularly without recognizing the long transition times it will take to get there, actually creates uncertainty amongst our international trading partners, and hinders investment in critically-needed international energy supplies.”

 

Cazalot noted his company is spending $3.2 billion to expand a Louisiana refinery, and that it wouldn’t make that investment if it believed the country was prepared to move quickly to renewable fuels.

 

“My definition of energy security is an adequate, reliable and sustainable supply of clean, affordable energy to meet the needs and aspirations of private citizens, commercial enterprises, and public sector functions,” Cazalot said.

 

“Energy security is more than just about energy. True energy security also means first, that we need to ensure environmental protection and sustainability, and that the price of our energy is comparable to that of other nation’s so we can maintain our economic competitiveness and maintain our standard of living,” he said.

 

“It requires a new balance, more energy overall with much reduced carbon emissions and environmental footprint while still maintaining economic growth and prosperity.

 

“That’s a goal we all should be able to aspire to, irrespective of where we come from or what our political affiliation is.”

 

They want it to know the oil and natural gas that’s recoverable today costs more to find and get out of the ground.

 

They also want the country to know that oil and natural gas companies today are environmentally conscious and have no desire to leave behind the types of environmental messes the industry became infamous for in past decades  — after all, its their homes too.

 

The commission honored two companies and two other organizations for their efforts to not only protect the environment, but also to educate the public about the work that they do.

 

Oklahoma City-based Devon Energy Corp. was honored by the commission for its water conservation activities in the Barnett Shale natural gas field in north Texas in the large company category. The company recycles water it uses to fracture wells it drills within the field.

 

Pioneer Natural Resources Alaska, meanwhile, was honored by the commission within the small company category for its efforts to minimize environmental impacts of a North Slope drilling project it recently brought online.

 

The Energy and Environmental Research Center, part of the Plains Carbon Dioxide Reduction Partnership, received the environmental partnership award for its multiyear collaboration of over 80 U.S. and Canadian stakeholders that is laying the groundwork for practical and environmentally sound carbon dioxide sequestration projects in the in the heartland of North America.

 

And the Coalbed Natural Gas Alliance, an organization of about 600 energy providers, businesses, ranchers, farmers and individuals, won in the energy education category for its work to educate people within the Powder

River Basin along the Wyoming-Montana region about its efforts to recover the gas without harming the environment where the work is ongoing. The alliance does it through the use of a three-part presentation specifically tailored to every audience, by distributing a “State of the Industry” report and by distributing quarterly newsletters and updating its Website.

 

They also want the country to know that the industry is partnering with government to create new rules to take potentially harmful carbon dioxide that could cause pollution issues and instead use it in ways that would enhance oil recoveries from older fields.

 

But the issue is a complex one that industry representatives have put years of work into already, and much more work still is needed.

 

Larry Bengal, director of the Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission, said the Interstate Oil and Gas Conservation Commission has been working on this issue since 2001.

 

It issued its first report on the topic in 2005, and issued a second one this year.

 

“Most people have misconceptions about what federal regulations will cover, and what they won’t.”

 

There are environmental and health and safety issues, resource management issues, such as storage rights, and regulatory framework dealing with cap and trade measures, Bengal said.

 

“All of these have to work together to really bring about carbon capturing and storage. And like I said, none of these really are at the stage of being completed, yet,” Bengal said.

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