What Has Trump Done For Oil And Gas

[BakkenOil + 6]

What has Trump actually done to make Oil and Gas Successful? I’m not asking because I am trying to stir the pot, more asking to see if our community is capable of civil discourse on the matter. Most in my industry that I am around will tout that Trump has been great for Oil and Gas, yet, we’ve seen 4 years of pricing down-turn, lost jobs and bankruptcies. I’m not saying that Trump is responsible but I’m not seeing anything I can give him credit for either. If you are one that does give him all the credit, can you expound on why? And before you give the standard “He cancelled Obama-era environmental regulations” answer, tell us how that has affected the bottom line and put more money in your company bank account/your paycheck? After all, who cares unless it makes our industry stronger on the capital side/brings more jobs/pays us more.

[Gerry Maddoux + 3,627]

I could not possibly agree with your note more. 

Like George W. Bush, Mr. Trump feels that the lower the price of gas is at the pump, the better for him. Nothing else matters. 

He has zero knowledge of the oil and gas industry and his adamant refusal to tell the Saudis to turn around their 22 VLCC'S during the oil glut showed that in spades. Either that or he has pending business with them. 

If he cares about oil and gas, he has a funny way of showing it. The horribly lax EPA standards allowed the Texas Railroad Commission, the Oklahoma Corporation Commission and the ND Industrial Commission to turn a blind eye to venting and flaring of NG without any oversight repercussions. This kept marginal operators going, flooding the pipelines, adding soot to an already tarnished reputation. 

Mr. Trump enjoys bragging about how he made America energy-independent (he didn't) but doesn't want to ensure that we remain so (and he could). The only reason I voted for Trump is because, unlike the opposition he doesn't appear demented, and his VP could actually run the country (better than Trump) and is not a socialist who wants to ban fracking.

I'm a huge Bakken fan too. We need a pipeline!

[JoMack + 547]

Trump opened the competitive oil and gas lease sales on federal lands to 4 lease sales a year and included all open federal acreage available.  Obama reduced sales to one a year and required the industry to apply for the federal leases (i.e. Permian Basin) in the sale and include data to back up the application.  So, the competitive lease sales pretty much died out since the data, as you are aware, is proprietary.  Access to the surface was banned so industry began to use horizontal techniques so one pad was used to avoid enormous fines.  The fees for permitting tripled and the BLM moved at a snails pace to approve any drilling, re-working, re-completion and other permits.  The industry was hammered and fined without cause and reclamation of even small sites was difficult for closure of matters by the fed.  The Permian Basin before Trump had nominal exploration since permitting was a tortuous, expensive and year long process.  Trump released regulations, gave the BLM a kick in the ass and drilling and production increased to 2 million bbls. a day.  I'd say Trump let the industry do its job and the oil and gas industry, at least the thousands of Operators in the Permian will definitely miss him.

 

[Gerry Maddoux + 3,627]

14 minutes ago, JoMack said:

I'd say Trump let the industry do its job and the oil and gas industry, at least the thousands of Operators in the Permian will definitely miss him.

Yes, they will, but not the fact that methane gas by the millions of tons was vented--not for the 24 hour window allowed by Statewide Rule 32 of the Texas Railroad Commission--or flared--not for the 10-day window allowed--but for months and months on end. The world noticed this, especially the kids, and they hate us for it. We will pay a price for it. The kids will make us. (Definition of Kids: The younger generation.)

All the TRRC had to do was abide by its own rules and drilling and fracking would have been 20% less, methane gas expulsion would have been 50% less, prices would have remained in the range where people weren't going broke by the scads, and the American oil and gas community would have at least paid homage to concerns about greenhouse gas. What has eventuated by unfettered venting and flaring--brought on by unenforced rules because the EPA was taken down--is nothing short of criminal behavior, not to mention wasting a precious natural resource that took Mother Nature a million years to manufacture (one million years at just the right pressure and temperature applied to organic material--unbelievable). 

I receive payment from approximately twenty oil and gas operators. Roughly half of them have gone bankrupt this year, but they're still going, thanks to the fact that when they can't afford a space in the pipeline shuffle, they just vent and/or flare the methane. As a consequence, we have a bunch of oilfield cowboys forming corporations and drawing out their two-million or so a year, carrying on. 

Again, Mr. Trump may mean well, but he has no true idea of what holds an oilfield together. Boom and bust has been the mantra of American oil production but it doesn't have to be. Now, largely as a result for the growing disdain for what we're doing, there is immense pressure to ban fracking, because the kids don't bother to learn about us . . . and why would they?

We'll miss Mr. Trump in the oil business, but only because he's going to be replaced by a mentally-challenged elderly man who will bend to any group--especially the kids (AOC and her gang). And then when he folds under the stress, soils his pants during a presser, here comes the illustrious Ms. Harris, who has stated on the debate stage that she would ban fracking on the very first day. 

Mr. Trump has no real knowledge of the oil and gas industry, the one that he claims credit for making America energy-independent. Whether we like it or not, we have to get in step with the rest of the world and learn how to regulate carbon release--we can't allow irresponsible people to just vent and flare to stay fiscally alive. 

I'm done. Over to the rest of you. 

 

[Eyes Wide Open + 3,539]

Each and everyone of has their own perceptions on how we see the world of oil and this man named Trump who stepped in and changed the dynamic's. Below are merely personal observation's and opinion oriented.

1. Trump allowed the market to find its own place, supply vs demand.

2. The Saudis flooded the market with oil, it is pretty easy to come to conclusion of market dominance thru price. If one cant pay your not allowed in the game.

3. Covid 19 broke the market's back and is still wreaking havoc of the worlds population's read demand destruction on a magnitude never seen before.

In the past few weeks Toyota has announced its research has changed from fusion cell tech back to battery powered vehicles with a very solid foundation. Not only do they have the tech, they have the capital, infrastructure, and the experience to bring EV's to the mass markets.

https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Technology/Toyota-s-game-changing-solid-state-battery-en-route-for-2021-debut

Ford and GM cannot set idle and watch Toyota gain that much market share they will move quite aggressively. A major shift is coming that is undeniable, I do not see any major infrastructure being implemented for many years to come, nor do i see the airline/ heavy truck industry recovering any time soon. I am afraid the public at large has run out of disposable income, 

 

[J.mo + 165]

Is anyone forgetting all of the Iranian and Venezuelan oil he pulled off the market? Surely that was not a boon to US oil..

the drilling he pushed for, the other legislations he fought for, the pushback he gave the greenies?

he surely knows the goonsquads ideas for oil to be a thing of the past. so he certainly wants the American oil to be drilled and pumped. Rather here than foreign. He is in the know much more than any of us regarding legislation, and pushback. He’s a smart guy, I know the media has bashed him every step of the way, but come on guys.. 

 

you can have volume, or you can have margin. But it’s very difficult to have both. The US nearly doubled its output. I know in a perfect world all you oilfield boys would love 13m b/d, but for it also to be at $100/b. But that isn’t realistic. High oil and low output helps very few in this county, it also causes recession. 

im in the same position as you guys, I’d love to pump 250k gallons per month from my station at $1/gallon margin. Never going to be realistic. I can have volume, or I can have margin. The place operates best somewhere in the middle..

[JoMack + 547]

8 hours ago, Gerry Maddoux said:

Yes, they will, but not the fact that methane gas by the millions of tons was vented--not for the 24 hour window allowed by Statewide Rule 32 of the Texas Railroad Commission--or flared--not for the 10-day window allowed--but for months and months on end. The world noticed this, especially the kids, and they hate us for it. We will pay a price for it. The kids will make us. (Definition of Kids: The younger generation.)

All the TRRC had to do was abide by its own rules and drilling and fracking would have been 20% less, methane gas expulsion would have been 50% less, prices would have remained in the range where people weren't going broke by the scads, and the American oil and gas community would have at least paid homage to concerns about greenhouse gas. What has eventuated by unfettered venting and flaring--brought on by unenforced rules because the EPA was taken down--is nothing short of criminal behavior, not to mention wasting a precious natural resource that took Mother Nature a million years to manufacture (one million years at just the right pressure and temperature applied to organic material--unbelievable). 

I receive payment from approximately twenty oil and gas operators. Roughly half of them have gone bankrupt this year, but they're still going, thanks to the fact that when they can't afford a space in the pipeline shuffle, they just vent and/or flare the methane. As a consequence, we have a bunch of oilfield cowboys forming corporations and drawing out their two-million or so a year, carrying on. 

Again, Mr. Trump may mean well, but he has no true idea of what holds an oilfield together. Boom and bust has been the mantra of American oil production but it doesn't have to be. Now, largely as a result for the growing disdain for what we're doing, there is immense pressure to ban fracking, because the kids don't bother to learn about us . . . and why would they?

We'll miss Mr. Trump in the oil business, but only because he's going to be replaced by a mentally-challenged elderly man who will bend to any group--especially the kids (AOC and her gang). And then when he folds under the stress, soils his pants during a presser, here comes the illustrious Ms. Harris, who has stated on the debate stage that she would ban fracking on the very first day. 

Mr. Trump has no real knowledge of the oil and gas industry, the one that he claims credit for making America energy-independent. Whether we like it or not, we have to get in step with the rest of the world and learn how to regulate carbon release--we can't allow irresponsible people to just vent and flare to stay fiscally alive. 

I'm done. Over to the rest of you. 

 

I'm so sorry your revenue declined, but don't blame Trump or the oil and gas Operators.  Point your dagger East.  

[Gerry Maddoux + 3,627]

JoMack: This is not me trying to put down Mr. Trump. This is a situation whereby the American president bragged all over the country that he personally had made America energy-independent, but then when the pandemic hit and the Saudis decided to send 22 Very Large Crude Carriers containing 55M barrels of oil when the Cushing Hub was full, refused to tell them to turn around. That singular act helped bring on the day of ruin--expiry day for the oil futures--when it cost $47/bll to haul away American crude. Now forgive me, sir, but if you don't blame Mr. Trump for that, who, pray tell, do you blame? 

Ted Cruz was on TV, shouting, "Tell them to turn the hell around!" Harold Hamm flew to Washington DC and pleaded with the president. That was a defining moment: you save the very industry that you bragged about.

It may sound as if I've turned on Mr. Trump. I haven't. I searched my mind as hard as I could and couldn't come up with a good idea why he wouldn't tell the Saudis to turn those VLCC's around. I still haven't come up with a good reason. When the Saudis decided to pump and dump in order to bury American shale, Mr. Trump could have changed their minds with a phone call. After all, Prince Mohammed bin Salmon had ordered the murder and dismemberment of an American journalist named Jamil Khashoggi. After all, the United States of America supplies defense for the KSA. One phone call and Prince MbS would have backed off or Mr. Trump could have cut off defense and let the ME know it and Mr. bin Salmon would have lasted about a day. But he didn't do that. No, he hung us out to dry. 

I'm like a lot of people, I'll get along because I'm not indebted and unless oil and gas go away entirely I'll survive. But let's face facts: there's no reason for an American president to behave in such a way. None! None, damn it! Not unless he or a member of his family had pending business with the Saudis or a loan from them. If there is a better reason, please tell me. 

I stuck with him, right up until the time he said he was "mulling over the possibility of giving Mohammed bin Salmon immunity from any future prosecution. That is beyond the pale for me. Again, I'm not out to try to pile on the guy; if someone can give me a reasonable explanation for these things I'll be happy to consider them. Until they do, I'm afraid I think there's much more to the story. 

This wasn't a matter of "your revenue declined," it was a matter of having oil coming out of the pipe and paying someone $47 per barrel to have it hauled away. I gather from your comments that you're a station owner. It would be like you paying someone five bucks a gallon to take your gasoline off your hands. 

Who would you point your dagger at? East? Sorry, but that's just plain bullshit, sir, and naive to the point of inability to understand the true nature of the situation. Mr. Trump has done zero to protect the American oil industry. Oh yeah, the one he bragged about as making America energy-independent. Am I bitter about this? Yes. Yes, I am. I think he treated Mohammed bin Salmon with more respect than Harold Hamm.

I'm a Republican, but this is inexcusable. Nothing quite this bad has happened since Ronald Reagan told us all to "drill deep" in the eighties. So we did. All the way to 29,000 feet. To drill deep took a lot of money. To compensate for that, deep gas was treated differently. Then Mr. Reagan began to lose his mental powers. We went from $13 per thousand cubic feet to about #2.50 on a Thursday. 

The point? Oil and gas have always been playthings for presidents. Especially Republican presidents. This one was just a little worse than the others. How in the name of God an oilman can not admit these things I do not know. Sure, we're about to get a mentally challenged man in office backed up by a socialist VP who has avowed to kill fracking. Why? Because to a lot of America just about anyone is better than Mr. Trump. I stood with him despite all this until he stated that he was mulling about the possibility of immunity for Mr. bin Salmon, the butcher of Saudi Arabia, the man who has not once but twice tried to destroy the American oil and gas industry. 

And you people defend him for this? Well, shame on you!

[Roch + 537]

2 hours ago, Gerry Maddoux said:

 

It may sound as if I've turned on Mr. Trump. I haven't. I searched my mind as hard as I could and couldn't come up with a good idea why he wouldn't tell the Saudis to turn those VLCC's around. I still haven't come up with a good reason. 

And you people defend him for this? Well, shame on you!

The reason Trump has sucked up to the Saudis is "Mideast Peace".

That was Trump's #1 goal.  He wanted to accomplish what no President could for the last 50 years. 

He needed the Saudis to bring all the Arab states in line.

He got close.  If Trump won he would have closed the deal.

I agree he should have stopped the 20 tankers.  So much for America First.

Truth be told the shale revolution was well on its way before Trump.  It was happening without him.

Edited December 25, 2020 by Roch

[JoMack + 547]

December 18, 2020 - NMOGA

 

According to the Energy Information Administration, in a span of five years New Mexico grew from the seventh- to third-largest oil-producing state in the union. Similarly, New Mexico is eighth in natural gas production. Accessible natural gas makes it affordable, and households are reaping the benefits; residential natural gas prices are 40% below the national average.

[Gerry Maddoux + 3,627]

^

You're right. The southeastern corner of New Mexico is incredibly rich in oil and gas. That was discovered to be the case several years ago, back when the Bass Brothers sold out, as did the Yates Family. The New Mexico Miracle was well underway by the time Mr. Trump took office . . . if that's the point you're making. And NM has been just as deficient as any other state in venting/flaring regulations--there are none, to speak of. Lots of people in the state of NM have noticed. 

You see, over half of that is on federal lands. 

The new Secretary of Interior appointee is Deb Haaland, an exceptionally angry Laguna Indian matriarch. She hates oil and gas with all her heart and soul, thinks it has destroyed the land of her ancestors, has waged war on it for years, wants fracking to stock even if it damages the revenue of her state (several billion a year into a special, hands off fund). 

Anyone who didn't believe Joe Biden's promise to end fracking on federal lands on day one in office might want to reconsider that, given his choice of Interior secretary. That right there is the only reason I voted for Mr. Trump again. Well, that and the fact that despite the fact he's mean and probably corrupt he's not demented. The oil and gas business just went on life support, especially if the two Democrats from Georgia win runoff spots, giving Democrats a clean sweep of House, Senate, Oval. 

American oil and gas is under siege from within. 

[RichieRich216 + 454]

Well you’re going to want to reflect back on that piece when the Greenies wipe out cost effective and Decades of fossil fuels.

If I had a desire to put up solar panels or have a wind farm on my property or block my view I would move to California!

Trump kept the United States out of the Paris shit show which was FRONT LOADED with us paying the brunt of the initial costs! Have China and India which are the largest Countries that causes pollutants.

We are a Country of suckers, Fought and won 2 World Wars, Rebuild are enemies and continue to fund Third World Countries and provide protection to NATO who did nothing but take advantage of us. We allowed foreign children in to come to get education and end up stealing our technology! 
 

HO HO HO & MERRY CHRISTMAS 

 

 

 

[JoMack + 547]

3 hours ago, Gerry Maddoux said:

^

You're right. The southeastern corner of New Mexico is incredibly rich in oil and gas. That was discovered to be the case several years ago, back when the Bass Brothers sold out, as did the Yates Family. The New Mexico Miracle was well underway by the time Mr. Trump took office . . . if that's the point you're making. And NM has been just as deficient as any other state in venting/flaring regulations--there are none, to speak of. Lots of people in the state of NM have noticed. 

You see, over half of that is on federal lands. 

The new Secretary of Interior appointee is Deb Haaland, an exceptionally angry Laguna Indian matriarch. She hates oil and gas with all her heart and soul, thinks it has destroyed the land of her ancestors, has waged war on it for years, wants fracking to stock even if it damages the revenue of her state (several billion a year into a special, hands off fund). 

Anyone who didn't believe Joe Biden's promise to end fracking on federal lands on day one in office might want to reconsider that, given his choice of Interior secretary. That right there is the only reason I voted for Mr. Trump again. Well, that and the fact that despite the fact he's mean and probably corrupt he's not demented. The oil and gas business just went on life support, especially if the two Democrats from Georgia win runoff spots, giving Democrats a clean sweep of House, Senate, Oval. 

American oil and gas is under siege from within. 

On December 18, 2020 the API, after meeting with industry are working and getting better controls on recapture of methane gas and reducing emissions and venting of natural gas  In addition I worked for an Operator who was the first to use seismic data to horizontally drill into the Delaware formation in the Permian Basin.  His success rate was copied by the Majors.  I know all about Deb Haaland and if the Republicans retain the Senate, I believe she will not be confirmed.  A major reason is the Governor of New Mexico, Lujan Grisham - D, relies on the billions of dollars coming in from the oil and gas revenues and taxes in the state.  It pays for the entire educational system in the state of NM.  

I know the Saudis and Russia went to war at the height of the coronavirus pandemic and brought over 3.5 million bbls of crude to market crashing prices, and Trump was President, and Cruz was screaming.  I also know the Saudis own Motiva the largest refinery in the United States in Port Jefferson, Texas.  Could anyone stop them?

At the time, I believe, this was happening, Trump was at the end point of his impeachment by Congress and trying to contain a major pandemic, while Joe Biden was hugging Cory Booker in March, 2020 after a debate and calling Trump a xenophobe.  Meanwhile, Cruz could do nothing since Congress gave a rats ass.  

You may think Trump failed, but an out of control situation with zero help from the Republicans, I stand with him since, as you point out, Biden is a man who cannot find the bathroom let alone lead the country.  But, he has power outside of Congress that will put every barrier in the way of the oil and gas industry as we see now in the companies who are being targeted in the stock market by activist investor groups.

One recent small example was a large independent oil company in Houston who wanted to buy jackets from North Face.  The company told the CEO they would not sell the jackets to them since they were polluting the air we breath and did to deserve to exist.  The CEO wrote back to the head of North Face to advise him that the jackets they make are made with nylon, polyester and spandex, etc., which are petroleum based, so without this product he so despises, he would to be making those jackets.

I'm sure I'm not giving you any information you don't already know, but blaming Trump is easy.  Without him, who knows, but it won't be good.  So I say, point the daggers east, since all of the countries, or most, SA, Russia and China will come for us and oil is always the main component of war through the ages.

 

 

[Gerry Maddoux + 3,627]

Look, I'll be the first to admit that I'm absolutely irrational when it comes to Saudi Arabia. I do indeed know the things you mentioned, but I'm glad you reiterated them. 

I am not much of a rabble-rouser, generally, and I was willing to give Mr. Trump a lot of leeway on the tanker deal. In response to your question about whether or not he could have stopped them, since they own Motiva, yes, yes he could have, by simply telling them that he was prepared to withdraw all defense money from Saudi Arabia. They would last, perhaps, one week on their own--not one country likes them, and for good reason. We were in one hell of a bind. It was unique, because several hundred parabolic wells coming in at the time had to be managed some way. We were in the middle of a pandemic that we were searching to understand. The Saudis decided to flood the market and deliver a death blow to the American oil and gas industry. Mr. Trump let them carry through. I do not for the life of me understand what is so damn difficult to understand about that. 

For the record, I thought the Bush Family was much, much too cozy with the House of Saud. I just about fell out of my chair when it became obvious that Osama bin Laden, from one of the most prominent families in the kingdom, was the ringleader and most of the terrorists in 9/11 were Saudis . . . but that we--in response--were going to invade Iraq. I personally don't understand how Mr. Bush can look in the mirror each day. Be that as it may, it seems that the House of Saud has just been given a titular, permanent form of immunity: for trying to destroy the heart of our capitalistic structure, for trying to bankrupt shale oil, for killing one of our citizens, for sending an overt message--via 22 VLCC's--that he could do as he wished to hurt us, even though we defended his nation from immediate destruction. 

For the record, Deb Haaland is a done deal--Mr. Biden has a clear argument for bringing in whomever he wishes to help run his government. Governor Luhan-Grisham receives a lot of money from the Delaware Basin, and has already asked Mr. Biden for a special waiver for her state to be excluded form a federal lands drilling/fracking ban. Mr. Biden had an opportunity to choose Ms. Luhan-Grisham as his Interior secretary, just as he has a choice about whether to take his chosen interior secretaries recommendations. But wait, does he now? The Sierra Club busted its collective ass for Mr. Biden, as did AOC and The Squad. They're already letting him know that he damn well promised them that he would ban fracking on federal lands. They have him by the short hairs. 

I'm very upset with this whole thing. I wish fervently that Mr. Trump hadn't insulted John McCain's war effort and firmly believe that Cindy McCain's widely televised speech in favor of Joe Biden cost Trump the election. I'm also pretty sure that the election was rigged and that "presstitutes" censored the news, skewing it in Biden's favor. 

This thread began with the question, What has Trump really done for the oil and gas industry. My answer then, and now, is not one damn thing. His clamp on the EPA allowed oil and gas regulatory commissions to ignore their own rules, with venting and flaring that was wildly out of control. I could care less that somebody is just now reacting: the damage is done; the world thinks we're destroying the planet; the investment world won't touch anything oil and gas with a ten-foot pole; we goosed the New Green Deal by telescoping ten years into one. By not corraling the Saudis, Mr. Trump made things worse, not better, and I don't give a damn about whether or not they had ready berthing rights to Motiva. You are all more than welcome to your frame of mind, stance, and so forth--protest that I'm unsophisticated about the real matters of the world all you wish. I know the history dating back to the time of my birth--I was raised listening to this stuff--so I remain steadfast in my own opinions. To me, a Republican and Trump voter, he hasn't done anything positive for the oil and gas industry--at least the small end of things--and frankly has probably done more harm than good. 

But when you hear stories about North Face turning down building and selling jackets to an oil company, look no farther than the fact that satellite images of the Permian Basin at night could be confused for the nightscape of the city of London. The Bakken is no better. Because a president said it was alright, we vented billions of tons of pure methane gas (10% ethane in the Bakken, which is worse) and flared trillions of tons of methane gas, not for 24 hours or 10 days as specified in the rulebook, respectively, but for months on end. Thousands of wells just shot their toxic jism into the sky--shooting the finger at the world. 

What did Trump really do for the oil and gas industry? He gave it a free pass to destroy itself by completely infuriating the under-forty crowd of the whole planet. And that's the truth, whether you wish to believe it or not.  

[Roch + 537]

 

Re-evsluate Ties to Saudi Arabia 

https://www.realclearworld.com/articles/2020/03/30/after_oil_crisis_lets_re-evaluate_ties_to_saudi_arabia_487885.html

 

Edited December 26, 2020 by Roch

[Roch + 537]

On 12/26/2020 at 12:41 AM, Gerry Maddoux said:

Look, I'll be the first to admit that I'm absolutely irrational when it comes to Saudi Arabia. I do indeed know the things you mentioned, but I'm glad you reiterated them. 

I am not much of a rabble-rouser, generally, and I was willing to give Mr. Trump a lot of leeway on the tanker deal. In response to your question about whether or not he could have stopped them, since they own Motiva, yes, yes he could have, by simply telling them that he was prepared to withdraw all defense money from Saudi Arabia. They would last, perhaps, one week on their own--not one country likes them, and for good reason. We were in one hell of a bind. It was unique, because several hundred parabolic wells coming in at the time had to be managed some way. We were in the middle of a pandemic that we were searching to understand. The Saudis decided to flood the market and deliver a death blow to the American oil and gas industry. Mr. Trump let them carry through. I do not for the life of me understand what is so damn difficult to understand about that. 

For the record, I thought the Bush Family was much, much too cozy with the House of Saud. I just about fell out of my chair when it became obvious that Osama bin Laden, from one of the most prominent families in the kingdom, was the ringleader and most of the terrorists in 9/11 were Saudis . . . but that we--in response--were going to invade Iraq. I personally don't understand how Mr. Bush can look in the mirror each day. Be that as it may, it seems that the House of Saud has just been given a titular, permanent form of immunity: for trying to destroy the heart of our capitalistic structure, for trying to bankrupt shale oil, for killing one of our citizens, for sending an overt message--via 22 VLCC's--that he could do as he wished to hurt us, even though we defended his nation from immediate destruction. 

For the record, Deb Haaland is a done deal--Mr. Biden has a clear argument for bringing in whomever he wishes to help run his government. Governor Luhan-Grisham receives a lot of money from the Delaware Basin, and has already asked Mr. Biden for a special waiver for her state to be excluded form a federal lands drilling/fracking ban. Mr. Biden had an opportunity to choose Ms. Luhan-Grisham as his Interior secretary, just as he has a choice about whether to take his chosen interior secretaries recommendations. But wait, does he now? The Sierra Club busted its collective ass for Mr. Biden, as did AOC and The Squad. They're already letting him know that he damn well promised them that he would ban fracking on federal lands. They have him by the short hairs. 

I'm very upset with this whole thing. I wish fervently that Mr. Trump hadn't insulted John McCain's war effort and firmly believe that Cindy McCain's widely televised speech in favor of Joe Biden cost Trump the election. I'm also pretty sure that the election was rigged and that "presstitutes" censored the news, skewing it in Biden's favor. 

This thread began with the question, What has Trump really done for the oil and gas industry. My answer then, and now, is not one damn thing. His clamp on the EPA allowed oil and gas regulatory commissions to ignore their own rules, with venting and flaring that was wildly out of control. I could care less that somebody is just now reacting: the damage is done; the world thinks we're destroying the planet; the investment world won't touch anything oil and gas with a ten-foot pole; we goosed the New Green Deal by telescoping ten years into one. By not corraling the Saudis, Mr. Trump made things worse, not better, and I don't give a damn about whether or not they had ready berthing rights to Motiva. You are all more than welcome to your frame of mind, stance, and so forth--protest that I'm unsophisticated about the real matters of the world all you wish. I know the history dating back to the time of my birth--I was raised listening to this stuff--so I remain steadfast in my own opinions. To me, a Republican and Trump voter, he hasn't done anything positive for the oil and gas industry--at least the small end of things--and frankly has probably done more harm than good. 

But when you hear stories about North Face turning down building and selling jackets to an oil company, look no farther than the fact that satellite images of the Permian Basin at night could be confused for the nightscape of the city of London. The Bakken is no better. Because a president said it was alright, we vented billions of tons of pure methane gas (10% ethane in the Bakken, which is worse) and flared trillions of tons of methane gas, not for 24 hours or 10 days as specified in the rulebook, respectively, but for months on end. Thousands of wells just shot their toxic jism into the sky--shooting the finger at the world. 

What did Trump really do for the oil and gas industry? He gave it a free pass to destroy itself by completely infuriating the under-forty crowd of the whole planet. And that's the truth, whether you wish to believe it or not.  

Little hard on The Donald ,aren't you ?

1. Donald did not deliver a death blow to the U.S. shale industry by allowing the 22 VLCC tanker armada.  Yes, it was a big hit, yes it hurt , but the death blow you describe was the result of many other factors.  I do agree Trump's should have stopped the tankers.  However, you act as the U.S. shale industry is the only oil market to be facing hardship. It is a worldwide industry problem.  Things change. 

2. Re the McCain Family.  The day before Trump's statement about McCain , during an interview regarding McCain's friend Lindsey Grahm running for President, John McCain was asked about Trump running for President . John McCain said , "Trump's a clown".  You didn't see Trump's family blasting John McCain for his disrespect.  I don't think Trump's comeback statement was so terrible but it was stupid and a tactical blunder on Trump's part. 

3. The Greenies have been going after fracking long before Trump.  You know better than I, but I don't think the flaring problem hastened the anti-fracking  Movement one bit. Just my opinion.

4. I empathize with you and others in the shale business.  It's been tough going.  In my opinion once the U.S. oil/shale Industry Consolidation completes (hopefully 2021) the U.S. oil industry should be a good business for the next 15 to 20 years.  

5. You ask what Trump did for the Oil and gas industry.  He did nothing accept take credit for Energy Independence, something he had nothing to do with.  Sometimes nothing is good.  Especially , when compared to what Biden may do " to " the oil industry.

6. I agree Saudis are no friend to the U.S.  They loved us when we bought all their oil and protected their country earlier in the 2000's.  We had no choice. Since the 1970s the Saudis have squeezed the U.S. oil production 8 times.  They were successful up until the the recent shale development.  The Saudis were clueless they didn't understand the shale economics. While the 22 tankers were hurtful it was Saudi and Russia's efforts to deliver a knock out punch to U.S. shale.  The March OPEC+ meeting  price war between Saudis and Russians was really an attempt to kill U.S. shale.  In the end the Saudis shot themselves in the foot once again.  

Do you believe in Karma ? Saudi Arabia is long overdue for some bad Karma.  While in some ways the mideast seems to be coming a little more stable.  Then again will the mideast ever be stable. Will the Oil States budget deficits continue. Is sustainable $60 Brent oil ever going to be a reality.  A serious conflict could cut off oil from the mideast and benefit the rest of the world oil industry.  

It will be interesting to see how Biden handles Iran, Saudi Arabia, etc.

I suspect Biden will continue to support the mideast establishment. He owes WallStreet Big Time. 

Three main thing WallStreet demands from Biden. (1) Don't mess with our China business. (2) Don't mess with our "Carried Interest" tax loophole. (3)  Don't mess with our Saudi and UAE investment banking business. If Biden does that for WallStreet they will make the Biden family even richer. 

 

Edited December 27, 2020 by Roch

[Old-Ruffneck + 1,177]

@Gerry Maddoux While the 40mmb or 22 VLCC's did effect the market some, that small amount would get absorbed into the 16mmb daily as of latest figures. It's a like finding another small pocket of oil in say.....Eagle Ford. September of 2019 we were inhaling 20mmb+ daily, and not all of it stays here in the good ol' USofA. We refine and ship alot back out. Wanna consume more oil? Quit using ethanol from corn to add to the fuels at 10% mandated. Food for fuel is bad idea IMHO. 

[Boat + 1,315]

On 12/24/2020 at 10:20 PM, Gerry Maddoux said:

JoMack: This is not me trying to put down Mr. Trump. This is a situation whereby the American president bragged all over the country that he personally had made America energy-independent, but then when the pandemic hit and the Saudis decided to send 22 Very Large Crude Carriers containing 55M barrels of oil when the Cushing Hub was full, refused to tell them to turn around. That singular act helped bring on the day of ruin--expiry day for the oil futures--when it cost $47/bll to haul away American crude. Now forgive me, sir, but if you don't blame Mr. Trump for that, who, pray tell, do you blame? 

Ted Cruz was on TV, shouting, "Tell them to turn the hell around!" Harold Hamm flew to Washington DC and pleaded with the president. That was a defining moment: you save the very industry that you bragged about.

It may sound as if I've turned on Mr. Trump. I haven't. I searched my mind as hard as I could and couldn't come up with a good idea why he wouldn't tell the Saudis to turn those VLCC's around. I still haven't come up with a good reason. When the Saudis decided to pump and dump in order to bury American shale, Mr. Trump could have changed their minds with a phone call. After all, Prince Mohammed bin Salmon had ordered the murder and dismemberment of an American journalist named Jamil Khashoggi. After all, the United States of America supplies defense for the KSA. One phone call and Prince MbS would have backed off or Mr. Trump could have cut off defense and let the ME know it and Mr. bin Salmon would have lasted about a day. But he didn't do that. No, he hung us out to dry. 

I'm like a lot of people, I'll get along because I'm not indebted and unless oil and gas go away entirely I'll survive. But let's face facts: there's no reason for an American president to behave in such a way. None! None, damn it! Not unless he or a member of his family had pending business with the Saudis or a loan from them. If there is a better reason, please tell me. 

I stuck with him, right up until the time he said he was "mulling over the possibility of giving Mohammed bin Salmon immunity from any future prosecution. That is beyond the pale for me. Again, I'm not out to try to pile on the guy; if someone can give me a reasonable explanation for these things I'll be happy to consider them. Until they do, I'm afraid I think there's much more to the story. 

This wasn't a matter of "your revenue declined," it was a matter of having oil coming out of the pipe and paying someone $47 per barrel to have it hauled away. I gather from your comments that you're a station owner. It would be like you paying someone five bucks a gallon to take your gasoline off your hands. 

Who would you point your dagger at? East? Sorry, but that's just plain bullshit, sir, and naive to the point of inability to understand the true nature of the situation. Mr. Trump has done zero to protect the American oil industry. Oh yeah, the one he bragged about as making America energy-independent. Am I bitter about this? Yes. Yes, I am. I think he treated Mohammed bin Salmon with more respect than Harold Hamm.

I'm a Republican, but this is inexcusable. Nothing quite this bad has happened since Ronald Reagan told us all to "drill deep" in the eighties. So we did. All the way to 29,000 feet. To drill deep took a lot of money. To compensate for that, deep gas was treated differently. Then Mr. Reagan began to lose his mental powers. We went from $13 per thousand cubic feet to about #2.50 on a Thursday. 

The point? Oil and gas have always been playthings for presidents. Especially Republican presidents. This one was just a little worse than the others. How in the name of God an oilman can not admit these things I do not know. Sure, we're about to get a mentally challenged man in office backed up by a socialist VP who has avowed to kill fracking. Why? Because to a lot of America just about anyone is better than Mr. Trump. I stood with him despite all this until he stated that he was mulling about the possibility of immunity for Mr. bin Salmon, the butcher of Saudi Arabia, the man who has not once but twice tried to destroy the American oil and gas industry. 

And you people defend him for this? Well, shame on you!

You forget the military lobby is bigger than the FF lobby. We take Saudi oil we don’t need and they spend billions keeping our military factories churning out weapon systems. This is Trump think. 
Just like over 4 Mbpd of oil dumped on Gulf from Canada that we don’t need. It keeps you Republicans fed and relevant. Takes billions to be relevant.

The Dems get tech money and are beating the once powerful FF bunch. Kiss that Saudi butt because you need that cash.

[Gerry Maddoux + 3,627]

^

It's the concept (optics) that bothered me, not the reality. 

The Saudis have tried to destroy the small American producer for quite some time.

And they are for the most part tribal and primitive and amoral. 

It doesn't take much to get me going when the Saudis are concerned. 

And I'm like a lot of people in American oil and gas, just trying to keep going. 

We need to allow extrinsic events take care of these people. 

[Boat + 1,315]

So why do you support pipelines from Canada like Trump and Republicans do. Are they not a competitor? Why do we let in imports from Russia and Venezuela. Are they not competitors? 

[Old-Ruffneck + 1,177]

10 minutes ago, Gerry Maddoux said:

^

It's the concept (optics) that bothered me, not the reality. 

The Saudis have tried to destroy the small American producer for quite some time.

And they are for the most part tribal and primitive and amoral. 

It doesn't take much to get me going when the Saudis are concerned. 

And I'm like a lot of people in American oil and gas, just trying to keep going. 

We need to allow extrinsic events take care of these people. 

I totally agree, I still remember the early 70's and the long lines at the stations, which were rationing gas. Ever since that time none of OPEC could be trusted and personally with so many Saudi Nationals involved in 9/11 if I would have been Bush, Saudi would be the 51st state. Take no prisoners...and btw, they still loathe us.

[Boat + 1,315]

I am all about energy independence. But I am not all about FF. The FF market is huge and even if electricity takes Market share I would want the US to supply its own needs. Even in 50 years the FF market will be huge. That’s not political, that’s reality. Funny how it takes a lefty like me to prefer US oil over Canadian or any other foreign country. This lefty is right of your oil politics. How can that be. What ya’ll been smoking. Be loyal my ass. Be a patriot and be fair to American producers that work and live here.

Quit thinking international profits and corporations. All this in the context of cleaner air and less pollution of course. 

[Spuds McKenzie + 8]

On 12/24/2020 at 12:25 PM, JoMack said:

Trump opened the competitive oil and gas lease sales on federal lands to 4 lease sales a year and included all open federal acreage available.  Obama reduced sales to one a year and required the industry to apply for the federal leases (i.e. Permian Basin) in the sale and include data to back up the application.  So, the competitive lease sales pretty much died out since the data, as you are aware, is proprietary.  Access to the surface was banned so industry began to use horizontal techniques so one pad was used to avoid enormous fines.  The fees for permitting tripled and the BLM moved at a snails pace to approve any drilling, re-working, re-completion and other permits.  The industry was hammered and fined without cause and reclamation of even small sites was difficult for closure of matters by the fed.  The Permian Basin before Trump had nominal exploration since permitting was a tortuous, expensive and year long process.  Trump released regulations, gave the BLM a kick in the ass and drilling and production increased to 2 million bbls. a day.  I'd say Trump let the industry do its job and the oil and gas industry, at least the thousands of Operators in the Permian will definitely miss him.

 

ehhh. Maybe?

But how much of the Permian production is on Federal land?

About half on the NM side and less than that on the Texas side. 
 BLM holds jurisdiction over far far less than 1/2 of Permian drilling & production. 
 Horizontal drilling & multi-well pads werent employed to bypass regulations, it is employed to efficiently drill & produce the shale formations. 
 I would say King Donald could care less about the US oil & gas industry. 
 He’s done little to protect the industry under his watch. 🤷🏼‍♂️

[specinho + 440]

On 12/25/2020 at 12:20 PM, Gerry Maddoux said:

JoMack: This is not me trying to put down Mr. Trump. This is a situation whereby the American president bragged all over the country that he personally had made America energy-independent, but then when the pandemic hit and the Saudis decided to send 22 Very Large Crude Carriers containing 55M barrels of oil when the Cushing Hub was full, refused to tell them to turn around. That singular act helped bring on the day of ruin--expiry day for the oil futures--when it cost $47/barrel to haul away American crude. Now forgive me, sir, but if you don't blame Mr. Trump for that, who, pray tell, do you blame? 

This wasn't a matter of "your revenue declined," it was a matter of having oil coming out of the pipe and paying someone $47 per barrel to have it hauled away.

Mr. Trump has done zero to protect the American oil industry. Oh yeah, the one he bragged about as making America energy-independent.

Pardon me Mr. Gerry........... not sure I understand this condition correctly but........... someone called Saudi, ordered a lot of oil. You were producing at the same time, not able to sell it to get paid, but paid someone to take them away??

First of all, you might need to know who ordered it?? Most likely not Trump himself??

Secondly, your appointed staff did not manage to response appropriately when you were producing much to be stocked for later but reported to you the aftermath losses, that you have not enough room for storage and they have to be taken away with charges, only?? You might have mistrusted an artificial intelligent automatic  processing machine that might be having following conversation:

Chat bot: hello, how may I help you?

Manager: Cut away production rate today.

Chat bot: (Message sent to tow away production today...........)

( The above scenario is sere fictitious based on a true story creating a customer service chat bot........ without success............. Any resemblance is merely coincidence...............)

 

 

[KilonBerlin + 9]

I remember the first Video about "Bakken" on YouTube in late 2011, it was a short bad quality (1st smartphone gen made?) video of a train and the person was filming from the starting point or a station crossed right at the front end and you could see all these (smaller than for trucks we call "LKW", these are the heaviest trucks here, I'm sure there are dozen official names for smaller ones but these are usually 20 tons or if allowed a bit more, I think as I did read about MAN/Mercedes (or a Joint Venture?) starting in 2021 with first series-"LKW" that their target is a version which can carry up to the 28t with an acceptable speed and range before needing to recharge, 

really all these new laws are a nightmare for any long time planing of oil companies, sure most car markers first too, but its like the SUV-trend, in the 90 I think we had almost no Pickups and SUV's here, car makers need now to change their offered cars to the new market, and EVs are worse in many things for making cash after the EV is sold, the typical car workshop services are not needed, I mean its lubrication-free afaik? Killing a few brand name engine oil companies and a few "cheap generika" like we would say if talking about medicine. The refineries also lose them as customers, I never drove a car (or only drunken with 15 in Poland and not as part of the traffic, one of these "Polski Fiat 126p", you can imagine much better like some soviet ww2 soldiers in an emergency "fixed" vehicle felt driving towards the fight, really interesting vehicle, 

however the video showed these countless waggons, a long "LKW/truck" does carry up to 26 - 27k liters of heating oil, already for a long long time only "heating oil "ultra light" (extra leicht)" is allowed for private persons, the heavier version I think can be used in some special cases, but we had that topic in another thread about heating oil in Germany and (West-)Berlin, as West-Berlin before being rebuild had the blockade and airlift expierence just 3 years after the wars end for a full year, this special situation wasn't forgotten when rebuilding the city, any real strategic reserves of anything didn't exist in the summer of 1948 in the western sectors far away from their sectors inside western germany, but now the 2026 law is pretty hard, new buildings constructed I'm not sure but I think they will be informed that not installing a hybrid-oil heating system will cause larger costs in 5 years when by 2026 you need to have a solar/photovoltaic-oil heating system (the cheapest one, works every where with little differences in average sun hours and how exactly the house is build), also everywhere possible a heatpump-oil system... in both cases a storage-system is required, I think if not already possible soon the "old" (70% and below) accumulator ("Batterys") are planned to be used for large solar- and wind-parks, but also a use in private houses makes sense and is a lot cheaper and has a much better co²-footprint compared to a brand new storage...the trains in the video looked more like a 10 to 15k liters shorter wagon, but since it had oil loaded (I think Bakken and most other of this isn't light but more heavy?!) they were maybe a bit more higher and the wheels were closer to each other, also if you looked very exactly I think on the front 2 trains were pulling and one in the end another one seemed to push, Trump was just very lucky to get the US oil/gas industry while they were creating new all time records, he did NOTHING and later always said he wants low oil prices so that the average american can get cheap fuel...

norway bans all oil fuel cars being sold (new cars) by 2025, only hybrid being an exception between 2025 and 2030 but these are because of norways very special system of low interest and over 50% of the new cars (incl. hybrids) sold since 2018 are EVs anyway, however large countries like Iran or India will hardly be able to do very much and even china with all the efforts would need a long time if they could bring EVs to 50% of new cars sold and than the time to replace the old cars..."Electricity Multis", wars for hydropower dams, coast areas for wind power and north african desert areas producing solar energy close to Europe, the giant territories in northern canada and power from Alaska running via Canada to the "Lower 48" and the north canadian almost unpopulated areas could produce energy which could be transported as far south as Mexico City, and South America has also areas with heavy potentials and low density and others very heavy populated, rich in minerals, fossil fuels but also hydropower (check Brazil/Paraguay...I think for Paraguay selling power to Brazil and maybe others or producing ultra energy intensive products like hydrogen could be the future?)

Well the world sometimes changes faster than you think, I remember a "pre-war" Warsaw show, some films were done when the bolshevik offensive threatened the city, but Stalin commanding the 2nd part of planned attack force ignored orders because he wanted to take his objective, this was almost a catastrophy for timoshenko who could retreat but the poles now feeling the power of nationalism started counter attacks and created many pockets, when stalin was on his way and arrived it was far too late and somehow that early red's had to make peace, they were weakened by years of fighting the "white" after starting the revolution in the middle of WW1 when Germany (and Austria-Hungary) were their enemies the Tsar and his white's had to make peace, in the early 1920's almost no motorization existed even in Warsaw and even the 1939 movies and pictures showed that public transport system powered by electricity (TRAM or in Warsaw as well as other Cities also Trolleybuses, in the largest cities a mix with some normal buses were used, in the smaller regions you used like in all cities incl. Warsaw the bike very much, larger distances were done by the conventional locomotives, same in Germany, only the few largest cities had some standard and Berlin had its Metro, the part I have to drive always to my substitution doctor is the oldest line (only a 4 station part underground) the rest was opened in 1902 as "elevated train" but expansion went on very fast and the real demand for busses was created by the "Greater-Berlin" laws in 1920, in the US by 1920 in rural areas still the majority had no electricity at home, for the total US I think, this incl. many migrants but also 1st or 2nd already US born generation