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 Shell In-situ Conversion Process |
| The Strategic Importance of US Oil Shale |
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There are significant financial and political pressures on the United States
to reduce its current (60%) and future reliance on foreign oil, pressures which
TomCo expects to increase due to the growing US demand for oil coupled with
supply
anxiety from the Middle East. Global oil consumption now exceeds new discoveries
at a ratio of 3 to 1. The US Department of Energy published a report in March 2004 "Strategic Significance of America's Oil Shale Resource" setting out the strategic rationale for the US to develop its oil shale and proposing that an oil shale industry could be established by 2011 with a 2020 aggressive goal of 2m barrels per day. They also published "America's Oil Shale: A Roadmap for Federal Decision Making" setting out recommend-ations for a program for development of US oil shale and proposed federal actions to facilitate and stimulate private industry to develop a domestic oil shale industry comparable to the Canadian development of oil sands. Section 369 of the US Energy Act Aug 2005, established a national policy to develop oil shale. The BLM which holds 80% of the Green River Formation, invited proposals to lease oil shale tracts for RD&D, conditional on the lessee developing a commercially and environmentally viable technology. TomCo believes that these actions form part of a strategic plan by the USA to exploit oil shale. Presently Shell Oil and other major companies are developing economically feasible ways of producing oil from oil shale. Shell Oil’s In-situ Conversion Process (ICP), shown below, obtains 3.5 units of energy for every 1 unit of energy expended. Shell has stated that within six to ten (6-10) years there will be techniques
available to extract oil from oil shale economically at an oil price of $30 per barrel. |
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18.07.08. Squeezing Oil from a Stone Energy Quest Again Leads to Shale, but Challenges Remain. (The Wall Street Journal believes that the United States can be the next Saudi Arabia of oil shale.) 19.06.08. President Bush realizes importance of Oil Shale President Bush outlines importance of Oil Shale production in the United States 01.04.08. US report on importance of unconventional energy sources This 2006 report highlights the importance of development of unconventional energy sources within the United States 30.10.07. CNN believes Oil Shale's future is now New technologies are making Oil Shale economically feasible Strategic Importance of Oil Shale Recent Report by the US Department of Energy... Strategic Importance of Oil Shale, Part 2 Recent Report by the US Department of Energy America’s Oil Shale: A Roadmap for Federal Decision Making A report prepared by the. U.S. Department of Energy |
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