The first topic of discussion with the conservative oriented, employer friendly Kiplinger News Letter, published Jan 6, 2012, was the topic of Energy. It was fascinating and unusually lengthy discussion on energy, too. I've hi-lighted in red what I thought were some surprising observations:
**************************************************************************** ******* ENERGY: While global oil supplies grow shakier. most recently in light of saber rattling by Iran. U.S. and Canadian oil output is surging. Along with natural gas and biofuels. It will fill 80% of U.S. fuel needs by 2016, compared with 68% this year and just 50% in 2005. [Personal comment: Just in time for the next presidential election.] Driving the boom: Vast new oil discoveries in N.D., Texas, Colo. and Ohio, as well as Canada, and cost-effective drilling technology breakthroughs for tapping oil in hard-to-reach shale formations. Huge natural gas deposits in Ohio, Texas, La. and elsewhere, many of them near big oil plays. Though decried by environmentalists, fracking, a method for extracting gas, will unlock decades of supply, not only for fuel, but for other needs, too. Also, the continuing march of biofuels, which are becoming a larger part of the energy mix, despite the end of federal tax credits for them. All this lowers the risk of fuel shortages, should foreign oil shipments be suddenly curtailed. It won't affect gasoline prices very much. What motorists pay will continue to hinge on global supply-and-demand trends. Though fuel consumption is heading down in the U.S... China, India and many other parts of the world are soaking up more as their economies expand. They'll press prices upward even as supplies grow. New finds will make the U.S. a net exporter of natural gas by 2016 or so, a welcome U-turn from recent scenarios that had the nation poised to be a major importer. In fact, Houston-based Cheniere Energy is retrofitting its liquefied natural gas import terminals for export. Other refiners are likely to follow in its footsteps. Still, lots of natural gas to go around for domestic users... good news for utilities, producers of plastics and fertilizer plus other energy-intensive firms. They'll pay less for the stuff than their foreign rivals. What could undermine rising output? A sustained drop in global oil prices... not likely in the face of rising world demand...would lessen drilling incentives. [Personal comment: Obviously, if Rossi & related competition claims pan out in the near future, that would initiate a sustained and permanent drop in global oil prices, despite rising world demand. Granted, It may not happen immediately, but perhaps within 5 - 10 years a permanent appreciable drop in fossil fuel prices would begin to be noticed world-wide. I have repeatedly attempted to contact the Kiplinger editorial staff to this possibility - warning them to have their clients keep an eye on their fossil fuel portfolios. They have consistently ignored my responses, never even acknowledging my attempts to contact them. This is unusual behavior on behalf of the Kiplinger editorial staff. Typically they are much more responsive. Historically speaking, I've received replies from the editorial staff, including replies when I told them about STEORN's zany activities years ago. I discovered they were very much aware of what STEORN was up to. and BlackLight Power as well. If the editorial staff had been aware of those folks, it seems logical for me to assume that they have to be aware of Rossi as well. Nevertheless, the fact that they continue to ignore my responses baffles me to no end.] And opposition from environmentalists, citing risks of groundwater pollution. Blocking Canada's carbon-intense oil sands projects is a particular focus for them. But in the end, economic forces will win out. Canada's 170 billion barrels of known oil reserves and the U.S.' big shale gas fields are too valuable not to exploit, giving America a surer grip on its energy future while reducing the need to import **************************************************************************** ******* Final personal thoughts on the matter: As you can see, the Kiplinger letter doesn't seem to put much stock in environmental issues stopping "progress". With the said, I suspect many on the staff may be sympathetic to environmental concerns, at least to a degree. This, I garnered from previous responses I received in private email. To their credit they do their best to report the news in an objective fashion as they see it, not how they wish the news would actually turn out to be. Occasionally, some of the staff hinted to me how idiotic Washington politics can be at times in the face of real facts. Still, I find it hard to believe they haven't at least acknowledged my repeated warnings of what Rossi could do to the portfolios of many who might be heavily invested in fossil fuels. The lack of a response baffles me. Perhaps, like many news gathering agencies, they have been affected by the economy and are now understaffed. I dunno. Regards, Steven Vincent Johnson www.OrionWorks.com www.zazzle.com/orionworks
