Yes, gas prices are going down all over the place... is it because of the up-coming elections... or.......

Ever heard of the Bakken Formation?

GOOGLE it or follow this link. It will blow your mind. http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=1911

The U.S. Geological Service issued a report in April ('08) that only scientists and oilmen knew was coming, but man was it big. It was a revised report (hadn't been updated since '95) on how much oil was in this area of the western 2/3 of North Dakota; western South Dakota; and extreme eastern Montana ... check THIS out:

The Bakken is the largest domestic oil discovery since Alaska's Prudhoe Bay, and has the potential to eliminate all American dependence on foreign oil. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates it at 503 billion barrels. Even if just 10% of the oil is recoverable... at $107 a barrel, we're looking at a resource base worth more than $5.3 trillion.

'When I first briefed legislators on this, you could practically see their jaws hit the floor. They had no idea, says Terry Johnson, the Montana Legislature's financial analyst.

'This sizable find is now the highest-producing onshore oil field found in the past 56 years,' reports The Pittsburgh Post Gazette. It's a formation known as the Williston Basin, but is more commonly referred to as the 'Bakken.' And it stretches from Northern Montana, through North Dakota and into Canada. For years, U. S. oil exploration has been considered a dead end. Even the 'Big Oil' companies gave up searching for major oil wells decades ago. However, a recent technological breakthrough has opened up the Bakken's massive reserves... and we now have access of up to 500 billion barrels. And because this is light, sweet oil, those billions of barrels will cost Americans just $16 PER BARREL!
>That's enough crude to fully fuel the American economy for 41 years straight.

2. And if THAT didn't throw you on the floor, then this next one should - because it's from TWO YEARS AGO, people! U.S.Oil Discovery- Largest Reserve in the World!
Stansberry Report Online - 4/20/2006 Hidden 1,000 feet beneath the surface of the Rocky Mountains lies the largest untapped oil reserve in the world is more than 2 TRILLION barrels. On August 8, 2005 President Bush mandated its extraction.

They reported this stunning news: We have more oil inside our borders, than all the other proven reserves on earth. Here are the official estimates:

-8-times as much oil as Saudi Arabia
-18-times as much oil as Iraq
-21-times as much oil as Kuwait
-22-times as much oil as Iran
-500-times as much oil as Yemen- and it's all right here in the Western United States.

HOW can this BE? HOW can we NOT BE extracting this!? Because the democrats, environmentalists and left wing republicans have blocked all efforts to help America become independent of foreign oil.

James Bartis, lead researcher with the study says we've got more oil in this very compact area than the entire Middle East -more than 2 TRILLION barrels. Untapped. That's more than all the proven oil reserves of crude oil in the world today, reports The Denver Post.

Don't think 'OPEC' will drop its price - even with this find? Think again! It's all about the competitive marketplace, - it has to.

So, what's your answer?

Van <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/patriot.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />

Prices are dropping right now to keep us from absolutely falling on our faces. My short version enyhoo.

From the USGS 4/2008

Article with link to assay

Would be hella cheaper than a gasline from up here, and without the Russians being involved.

How long before this one dissapears from the news like the others over the last few decades.

Your link notes the estimate at 3.0 to 4.3 billion barrels, per the USGS. How are you then arriving at 150 billion barrels? Please link to THAT!

John B.

Here's what I think Van was referring to:

It's Shale Oil

You have to get down to page 32 before it's relevant to the U.S.

Not the same deposits as the Bakken. Also not as easily nor cheaply recoverable. With oil prices as low as they are, it may be a while before we lean on this more heavily. Nice to know it's there, though.

John B.

It still doesn't change the fact that the burning of fossil fuels creates pollution & is a significant contributor to global warming. We don't need more oil, we need more alternatives to oil. Having gas prices at $3+ a gallon may suck, but it's done more to get the average American to do something about their fuel usage than anything since the fuel shortages of the 70's.

[quote]Prices are dropping right now to keep us from absolutely falling on our faces. My short version enyhoo.

From the USGS 4/2008

Article with link to assay

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>>>*I remember getting laughed at when I said gasoline would be under $2.00/gallon by Christmas. It was teasing $4.00 at the time. (Wish I had been smart enough to think of stock funds, though) *Like, DUHHH. *EB getting old, it seems.

The reason is simple, the entire world runs on energy, and oil is the big one. The USA is the big market, too.

Yank an extra $50/100 out of every pocket while raising the price of EVERYTHING and that adds up to everything from inflation to adding to the housing "crisis" (note I have that one in...quotes.

It actually isn't the total cost of oil, it is the suddenness of the increase because $100+/barrel oil is a tad behind the true inflation rate.

Well, if we look back at 1973 to into the 80's, anyway.

Thus the economy takes a dump, and that means people...begin to stop..buying oil products. Can't make the house payment, can't buy a car. Stock market tilts quickly when things head south. Walmart doesn't buy so many toys from China, 1400 factories there close within weeks...

Arab goes.."OHOH! Camel needs hay!" and the price goes down. *Bit over simplified but not by far....*LOL**..

Add in oil is based on dollars and dollars are devalued???

Suddenly oil shale looks interesting, it's been well known we have that reserve for as long as I can remember. The island we live on is an oil shale dome underneath, most of the Oregon coastal range is.

*Hmmm...I wonder if my apple cider press would squeeze some out?... <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />...probably not...

The whole situation is a bit like two guys tugging on a rope. Price goes up, good for alternatives. Price goes down, good for the economy.

*Somebody will win in the end...*EB
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"Would be hella cheaper than a gasoline from up here, and without the Russians being involved."

*....Yep!...*EB

I've still never seen that proven as fact, and MANY intelligent people say it is NOT a fact. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

What was interesting to me is how these 'hybrid' cars may have a bigger carbon footprint; why?

You have to do quite a bit of mining to make that nice little battery plant those things come with, plus there's the disposal issue.

so, what does it take to get the raw materials out of the ground?

You've guessed it; diesel- n lots of it.

W/o U.S. consumerism China's and India's demand/competition for our:o global oil resources has been reduced dramatically, add in our own decreased demand for gasoline, and oil prices have to fall. The new oil reserve does help to reduce speculative future supply/demand prices, but the current demand has more to do w/the drop in price than does any of the new finds, or the election.