[Larry Weitzman]
How ironic is the Biden administration for blaming Putin for high gas/oil prices? The moment Joe Biden became president he started his war on oil by canceling the Keystone XL pipeline. Biden continued this war by canceling oil leases, not permitting for drilling the 9,000 leases still outstanding, raising the cost of leases, stopping fracking on federal land and even attempting to appoint to the Federal Reserve Board individuals who oppose banking institutions that lend to oil producers. Raskin, Biden’s nominee, withdrew.
Biden said he would wage war against oil during his campaign. Prices started their climb from about $40/barrel to about $100/barrel the moment he won the election. Oil was already at $90 to $100/barrel before Putin invaded Ukraine. When that invasion began, oil spiked to $130/barrel but has since returned to $100 tp $110/barrel.
Biden also blames the oil industry for price gouging. He has no evidence. Even worse is that of the 150,000 gasoline retailers (stations), 95% are not owned by oil companies, but by moms and pops. And their profit margin is just a few cents a gallon. That’s why gas stations have added convenience stores; they need the additional profits to make ends meet.
Oil is a fungible product. It is a world market with price set by supply and demand. With Biden’s war on oil, U.S. production has fallen from about 13 million barrels a day to about 11 million barrels a day. That is the single, biggest reason for high oil prices — less supply.
So what does Biden do about high oil prices to mollify the masses? He begs Iran and Venezuela for more oil production. Why wouldn’t he relax his anti-oil regulations? That might upset the “greens.”
There is nothing in the foreseeable future to replace oil. It is by far the densest form of controllable energy known to man, except for nuclear.
With respect to transportation, there is no alternative to petroleum. Batteries are not energy; they are a fuel tank storing energy and their efficiency is less than 2% percent of liquid petroleum.
Energy density is the reason there won’t be electric airplanes. Even a commuter jet like a Boeing 737 carries 45,000 pounds of jet fuel. Large intercontinental airliners like a Boeing 777 carry more than 300,000 pounds of fuel. The equivalent energy in a battery would weigh in at 17.5 million pounds. That doesn’t fly. Yes, there are electric airplanes flying right now but their load capacity is limited to maybe two people and 20-30 minutes of flight time at a speed of about 100 mph. Rolls Royce recently flew a single-seat, single-passenger aircraft about 350 mph but its endurance was limited to about 15 minutes because of the very limited onboard energy.
Whether you are worried about climate change or not, there is no current replacement for petroleum and there won’t be in the foreseeable future. Natural gas supplies the energy for 40% of our electrical grid. Coal amounts to 20%. Wind and solar supply 10%. Nuclear remains at 20% while hydro (8%), biomass and geothermal make up the balance.
Banning petroleum or artificially limiting its production in the United States, puts the U.S. at the mercy of its enemies.
The ancillary effect of Biden’s war on petroleum is Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. Biden’s policies pushed oil from $40/barrel to more than $100/barrel. Since Putin (Russia) is a major energy exporter, Biden and the greens helped finance the destruction of Ukraine. Apparently, not only do Biden and his green associates (John Kerry and AOC) hate America and its citizens, they also don’t think much of the Ukrainians.