Pipeline Politics Derails More than Jobs
One of the major complaints of environmentalists has been increased carbon emissions because of the pipeline, a complaint Dougher says is unfounded. She says there have been two environmental impact supplementary reviews and 14 federal agencies concluded carbon emissions would be greater if the Canadians build the pipeline to the west and put the oil on tankers to China, which Canada has said it will do if the pipeline is not ultimately approved.
Moreover, from the national interest standpoint, Canada is our single largest trading partner. For every dollar we spend in Canada, they spend about $.90 here. For every dollar we spend in the Mideast, they spend $.33 here. It’s hard to comprehend that doing more business with a country that wants to do business with us is “not in the national interest.”
U.S. Rep. Lynn Jenkins (R-Kansas) agrees that the entire debacle was political from start to finish:
President Obama’s decision to block the Keystone Pipeline is simply another example of this White House putting election politics before economic recovery. While the President’s friends in the environmental lobby may be cheering, the tens of thousands of hard working Americans who won’t have a job because of this decision are certainly not.
The Keystone Pipeline is an environmentally safe project that has adopted safety standards which go far beyond anything required of any pipeline in existence today. Additionally, the Keystone Pipeline will help lessen our dependence on Middle Eastern oil, while creating 20,000 direct American jobs and over 100,000 indirect American jobs. The President has had more than three years to make a decision on the pipeline as it has been studied and developed, and blaming his decision on a 60 day deadline put in place after three years of study is nothing but a political farce. We should move forward on final construction of this immensely important project immediately. But as the President told his Jobs council … “Obviously this is an election year,” so we clearly shouldn’t expect much from the Obama White House.
Glendening also noted this would make it more difficult to secure future investments:
It dampens future projects when you have a runaway EPA or a State Department who look to the EPA for guidance.
Dougher also noted the oil companies have invested nearly double what the government has in searching for renewable sources of energy, and nearly as much as all the other industries in the U.S. have combined. Exxon Mobil, for instance, has poured more than half a billion dollars into making fuel from algae.
In the end Obama has himself in a cleft stick. It’s an election year, and he doesn’t need to be seen as killing jobs. But the last thing he can afford, given his approval numbers, is to lose the support of the radical environmental movement which helped get him elected.
“But the last thing he can afford, given his approval numbers, is to lose the support of the radical environmental movement which helped get him elected.”
Even that point is lost. Who else would those progressive (liberal, socialist, Marxist) bozos vote for anyway? There has to be a greater reason than that. First guess…$ in someone’s pocket??
They may vote for him,
but they won’t contribute to his re-election campaign unless he does what they tell him.
Obama is planning on spending ONE BILLION DOLLARS for his re-election. Much of that comes from the guilt-ridden liberal wealthy, like Hollywood, who are sold on environmentalism. And from environmental activists who had the good fortune to inherit wealth from their parents:
Obama fundraiser Wendy Abrams, for example, a well-heeled Chicago enviro-activist and Rahm Emanuel buddy whose family owns the country’s largest privately held medical equipment maker, recently warned that the Keystone decision would show whether Obama “really wants to begin the transformation to building a renewable energy future.”
http://tinyurl.com/6sq3j7r
Winner Winner Chicken Dinner
Obama and all the professional leftists are mostly about money. Money for them. Vetoing Keystone means hundreds of millions of current and future dollars for Obama.
Follow the money.
The other thing to consider is the State Department, crammed with Islamists who are more than willing to play along with the “environmental” movement if it keeps money flowing to the Middle East (you think the Saudis aren’t slipping money into Obama’s campaign coffers?). Oh, and Warren Buffett’s investments in rail (which is how a lot of Canadian oil is shipped presently) will benefit as well.
That decision had bugger all to do with the environment, only the greenies are too delusional to understand that.
I don’t think its about money or losing support of the radical enviro marxists.
Truth is zero has the entire federal budget to play with. The billion bucks he raises is just more smoke,just more chaos,just busy work given to him by Valerie and Moochhell who run the WH 24/7.
As far as losing the environmental wacko votes its already been pointed out they have no where else to go.
I think its about ideology. But not his. He’s as agnostic as they come.
If you think that Valerie Jarrett is running the show(and I do) and zero takes orders form her and you know her background especially where she spent the first 7 years of her life than he’s just obeying more orders from headquarters.
This guy is the true meaning of a Mancuhurian candidate.
If you are looking for $$$ motives there are several. His best buddy, please raise my taxes Warren Buffet, owns the rail company that hauls the oil now, and would be displaced by the pireline. And several of the environmental groups lobbying against the pipeline have taken Saudi Money, to ensure that they continus to supply the oil, instead of Canada. And George Soros has big interests in the Brazilian offshore oil, that would also benefit. And both the Canada gov, and the oil refiners, that would both benefit from the pipeline (in addition to US workers) are all political conservatives. In addition, killing the pipeline will raise US fuel prices, helping his alternative energy and electric car cronies. This president is a master of crony capitalist corruption, rewarding his friends, and screwing his enemies, all under the banner of phony environmentalism, while in fact harming the environment.
“…$ in someone’s pocket?”
Likely. Soros and Petrobras out of Brazil, not to mention Obama’s buddy Chavez and his Venezuelan state-run oil, stand to lose big time if Americans are actually using North American oil.
Obama is obviously hostile to practical and econmomic forms of energy. To him, oil and coal are bad. He doesn’t want us using oil or coal. He is currently selling off the Strategic Oil Reserve and that is keeping the price of gasoline lower than it would be under normal free market conditions. After November, when the SOR is depleted, the price of gasoline will shoot up, probably to $10/Gallon or more. As long Obama is in office there will be no Keystone Pipeline.
“Obama is obviously hostile to practical and econmomic forms of energy.”
Exactly. In fact, that’s the whole environmentalist shtick — they oppose energy, industry, and Western civilization. The dangers they cite, like Snail Darters, Delta Smelt-its, danger of spills, etc. are just pretexts for throwing a monkey-wrench into industry. They only want power generated by unicorn toots.
Obama’s Great Keystone Cop-Out is reprehensible, nearly criminal.
could some one do a write up on the fact that warren buffet is benefiting from the blockade of the pipeline?
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/obama-puppetmaster-warren-buffett-biggest-winner-keystone-pipeline-rejection
is this even true?
seems like a political gem if it’s true
“In the end Obama has himself in a cleft stick. It’s an election year, and he doesn’t need to be seen as killing jobs. But the last thing he can afford, given his approval numbers, is to lose the support of the radical environmental movement which helped get him elected.”
Which is why Obama should be ashamed of himself. Even though I know you can’t shame the shameless, there are people actually hurting out there financially and the jobs that this pipeline would create would help them out a lot. Yet does he even admit this? No. Obama is so concentrated on keeping his job that he doesn’t mind if thousands lose theirs. What a worthless public official puts his needs over the needs of thousands of unemployed workers. If the Republicans would just stop talking about tax returns for a few days and concentrate on this, maybe they would get more support from independents out there. Or maybe from the whole nation, for that matter.
I don’t even think this is about the pipeline. Obama is kowtowing to the environmental weenies to get their vote while he does not really care about this issue. This is more about bringing the country to the brink of collapse which is real agenda. This man will use anyone to achieve his convoluted goal/agenda. It is all confusing. But if you look at how vulnerable this is leaving us with the increase in gasoline prices, low production for home heating, etc. it all makes sense.
Poor Patrick don’t you get embarrassed being so deceitful and shilling for oil? I know this may be to complex for you but Tar Sands does emit far more Co2 into the atmosphere than any other method of oil extraction – a far better solution would be to build more refineries in N or S Dakota. Now that would really help everyone except Keystone as their oil would be landlocked and not demand higher prices. So they get shills like you to talk to the uninformed who have no clue about what is really needed (and just maybe you have no clue either) to pipe that sludge through the pipes. If the people were given an alternative they would decide on refineries there. Gasoline prices would be lower and we would not have to then export all that oil to where? Can you say China – since when have you been a shill for China?
Poor Flaming Wingnu… er Liberal, they won’t let us build refineries. I’d love to see refineries built in every state — tomorrow. But the EPA hasn’t allowed any new refineries in decades. Every refinery in the nation is already running at over 90 percent of capacity with barely enough time off for maintenance.
As for the CO2 issue, that wasn’t API’s numbers. That was 14 different agencies of the federal government you love so well which said there would be a greater carbon footprint if the oil had to be trucked and put on tankers than if the pipeline was built.
Then of course there’s the 20,000 jobs, the nearly half billion dollars already invested, the 100,000 indirect jobs, the kids getting to, you know, eat, tomorrow (it’s really all about the chilluns you know). But none of that matters to you or to Obama, because oil is bad and oil companies are evil incarnate. Why Satan doesn’t really look like a goat you know, he’s really an oil company executive.
What was it you said you drive again?
Poor Patrick you lose all credibility when you post myths such as 20,000 jobs. Even if you look at Keystone numbers it doesn’t even come close to 20,000 jobs. What some oil shill like you testified to was that there would be about 5,000 jobs for 4 years. Which is also greatly inflated.
Now if you had even a smidgen of credibility you might address the fact that the existing pipeline already has had spills and one of about 21,000 gallon and it’s not even a few years old. Now maybe someone of your stature could understand how some people might be suspect of having a pipeline that is basically pumping oil at the consistency of peanut butter. Oil that is far more abrasive and will cause wear and tear on that pipe.
But don’t get your panties in a wad – it will be approved after the election – when have the oil companies not gotten whatever they want including subsidies?
Oh and they have an oil refinery in ND and want to add more. Oh and does Canada also not allow refineries. If you ever wanted to be honest you realize our oil will be exported to other countries – now does that make any sense?
“Now if you had even a smidgen of credibility you might address the fact that the existing pipeline already has had spills and one of about 21,000 gallon and it’s not even a few years old.”
Talk about losing credibility. A typical tanker car contains 15,000-30,000 gallons. There was a 22 car derailment last week in Saskatchewan in which a couple of tank cars were punctured and hazmat teams had to be rushed in to contain spilled oil. So, this one derailment was a far worse environmental disaster than the biggest pipeline spill you cite. And there were dozens of such events last year across the US and Canada. By opposing the pipeline you are directing more Canadian oil to rail transport which is inherently more dangerous, less efficient and casts a bigger carbon footprint. So why do you hate the environment? Eh!?
Poor Flaming Liberal don’t you get embarrassed being so deceitful and not reading the article?
Here’s a few clues: without the Keystone pipeline Canada will build their own pipeline to their western ports (page 2 of the article) and sell their tar sand oil to China. So being for Keystone is not supporting China.
Oh, yes, and one Mr Warren Buffet just happens to be a major investor in one of the industries that would get some extra competition if Keystone happened. You know? One of those evil one-percenters you (as a self-confessed flaming liberal) dislikes so very much for perverting the normal decision-making processes of government. Gee. Coincidence? Must be. Despite his long, well-documented record of funneling goodies to his wealthy friends, the President would never funnel goodies to one of his wealthy friends.
Here’s a thought? How about we drill for our own oil and build more refineries? Oh, wait. The EPA isn’t letting that happen. The EPA you (as a self-confessed flaming liberal) are sure is always right about these things.
Wearing all natural fabrics are we? Not a hint of plastics anywhere in your home or work place? All plastics, all synthetic fabrics use oil. It ain’t just the cars.
Kate do you know how many Refinery permits were requested from 1975-2000 – I’ll answer ONE and that was approved. The myth you seem to wrap yourself in and many people who don’t seem to capable of any research and just listen to oil shills is that the EPA is preventing refineries – That’s not true.
Now if you understand supply and demand you might have noticed oil company consolidation in the last 20 years. Oh and you might also want to realize that when demand is limited prices go up.
Now Patrick might know this but maybe he like most conservatives are incapable of connecting the dots – the strategy of the major companies has been to put pressure on independent oil refineries and many went out of business in the 90′s and early 2000′s. Over 1 million of refining capability was taken out which drives margins up. What has been happening is that existing oil refineries owned by the majors has been expanding and getting EPA approval
So both you and Patrick should try to be at least honest and if one reads something that sounds stupid it usually is – the EPA is not saying no to permits.
Whe demand is limited prices go down, not up. When supply is limited they go down.
You are trying to make the prices go up by limiting supply. And the ANWR idiocy makes me so mad. Not to mention Ralph Nader destorying the nuclear industry.
FL,
In addition to the fact that it is virtually impossible to permit a new refinery in the U.S., there is a much bigger problem with siting a refinery in the Dakotas. How do we get the refined product to market? The vast majority of the pipelines in the U.S. transport refined petroleum products, not crude. We have literally thousands of miles of pipelines distributing these refined products from the main refinery complexes of the Gulf Coast. In addition, the Gulf Coast area has refineries already built that can process the heavy crude produced by the tar sands. (Refineries are designed to process specific types of oil.) Pipelines from the refineries in the Gulf are already in place to distribute these products throughout the country. Having to build distribution pipelines from the Dakotas to the rest of the country would dwarf the Keystone XL project.
Thank you, FL, for providing more support for the theory that you liberals are too dishonest to live in the same society with, and that any possible means to remove you from it are not only necessary but desirable.
Hey FB, it is really none of your business. We have pipelines everywhere in America so what if there are a few miles more. Ben Franklin’s motto for America was: “Mind your (own) business”. Not too late to adopt it!
Don’t you realize that making idiotic charges like implying someone is being paid by the oil companies (you are aware the oil companies fund the greenies, aren’t you?) makes us realize that anything else you say is equally idiotic.
It was simply an opportunity for Captain Zero to PUNISH the United States in a very obvious, very street-like way. He revels in the movie-scene-like way he did it and casts himself as the star.
His hatred of this nation is palpable. His pettiness and rhetoric are sophomoric and he is a tiny little man with enough anger and hatred to fill an ocean.
Two things to know about Obama:
1)Every time he speaks, he lies
2)Everything he does is toward the demise of the United States.
For the Obamski these are far less important than the fact he is sexy (in their eyes).
Punish the US, yes, and punish Texas. A two-fer.
Planned route is all in RED States, plus Buffet gets to play conductor with his trains full of 55 gal drums of oil till its approved and underway again
16 SCIENTISTS HAVE A MESSAGE FOR ELECTED OFFICIALS ON GLOBAL WARMING: ‘DRASTIC ACTION’ UNNECESSARY
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/16-scientists-have-a-message-for-elected-officials-on-global-warming-drastic-action-unnecessary/
Remember, according to the Annointed One, “we’ve come too fat to turn back now”…and killing jobs, lots of jobs is a necessary evil in order to get the environmental voters in his pocket. It’s still surprising to me how many people who voted for him are still allowing themselves to be led along like livestock. This current president talks so much sh1t about big business and jobs and things seem to get worse every month. But it’s it to find that kind of news because the liberal stream media continues to shill for him and about the swell job he’s doing for the collective masses…..er the country
First, Obama’s approval numbers are increasing; he is becoming more popular. Second, anyone with half a wit would never go near this guy in the first place.
This election may be a re-run of the 2008 election, that is; competence is less important than sexy. The good news is that America will be such a mess if Chicago Jesus is re-elected even some of the O’s credulous followers may admit he is at best only a demi-god. They may even become a little wiser.
You say, “One of the major complaints of environmentalists has been increased carbon emissions because of the pipeline, a complaint Dougher says is unfounded.”
It certainly is unfounded because the entire concept that carbon dioxide is a pollutant is BOGUS. It is a FRAUD. Man-made carbon emissions DO NOT CAUSE GLOBAL WARMING. Carbon dioxide levels rise as a result of global warming; they are not a cause of it. The entire industry of carbon credits and carbon trading was invented to be a silent tax upon the peoples of the developed world.
Poor thing, he does his best to destroy America and we do not appreciate his efforts.
C’mon, we are the bad guys, we need to become poor and weak.
The best professional revolutionary since Lenin, and very few have understood that.
(And yes, Lenin too was a tool of someone else, like this one is for the islamists. Lenin was a tool of the Germans, who brought him to Russia to spread chaos and win the war on the eastern front.)
Yep. Barry is a tool, alright.
Just a couple of questions.
I heard recently a congress critter had introduced a bill to end run the president and okay the pipeline through congressional action. Has there been any new word on that?
Second, does anyone know what happened to that hole in the ozone we were creating with our use of hairspray 20 or 30 years ago? Are we dead yet?
The ozone problem was fixed by banning flourocarbons from spray cans and refrigerants, and replacing it with CO2. That solution was not that expensive, and did not seriously distort the economy. If there was an equally economical solution for CO2 emissions I could support it, since there is at least some chance that some of the the more moderate AGW people are at least partly right. But to spend trillions, and overturn the entire world economy, and having enviro socialist burocrats having a stranghold on the whole world economy, for something that MIGHT be true, but more likely is not, no way.
Should we be surprised? “Under my policies energy prices will necessarily skyrocket”. Just another page out of Cloward-Piven to destroy the USA bringing about the socialist dream.
I read the supplemental environmental impact statement to better understand the outstanding issues. About half of the document volume is associated with environmental justice and the potential dollars associated with minorities on either side within 4 miles of the 1300 mile pipeline. Ref page 3-154 of the document. The shakedown underway is how to set up a multibillion dollar fund for the administration cronies to use as a slush fund as with BP and pig ford. Its just money redistribution again hidden behind the environment kinda like global warming
Why did State say NO?
Simple:
A reduction in the importance of ME oil on the economic fortunes of the USA, would mean a reduction in the importance of the “Arab Desks” within State, and would presage a RIF in that area of “expertise” within State.
It’s all about jobs, baby; and we’re not talking about the “oil patch”, but Foggy Bottom.
Indeed. You can count on the State Department always to act according to its departmental interests. If it does so when questions of war and peace are on the table, why not when the issue is the national economy?
Great point!! The Arab desks inside the State Dept are very strong.
I think there are two major reasons that Obama is using to derail the new pipeline. The first reason is that it would cut out a significant amount of Mideast oil and therefore hurt his buddies in the Mideast. The second is that Soros is a major player in the new Brazilian offshore oil fields. Obama intentionally shut down drilling in the gulf so that the unemployed rigs were moved to Brazil. In addition, the Obama administration subsidized this new oil venture with US money. This is the first time that the US subsidized a private foreign oil venture. Being that Soros is Obama’s buddy and sponsors many of his attention getting schemes (like the occupy movement) and other left wing movements, blocking this pipeline is just a form of political payoff. Giving Warren Buffet more business is just another plus.
The big danger is that Canada will opt to sell its oil to China. If that happens we will lose a big chance of freeing ourselves of the Mideast oil and having to kowtow to the Arabs. The whole idea of that happening is mind boggling.
TWO WORDS for the Emperor,,,F_CK YOU. But have a nice day and dont let those lips get sore kissing all that Enviro AS_!!
I noticed one of the commenters raised the specter of increased Co2. This is a canard the left always uses. C02 is beneficial to life. Indeed, the greatest surges in living matter on this planet have been in times of increased C02. As for tar sands in general, we used to visit the La Brea Tar Pits and associated museum in the Los Angeles area. Oil seeps are a common occurrence in areas where ancient inland seas covered most of the interior and coastal regions of our continent.
Since when did photosynthesis become the outcast of science? Where do these scientific challenged people think our oxygen comes from for our planet?
Of course Co2 is valuable but only in moderation. Sit back in a chair and just think about what you said – if Co2 continues to increase it will increase the heat of the earth as it’s a heat trapping gas. It’s going up very fast and with the tundra thawing that is releasing methane at alarming rates as well.
Here is a site if you truly want to educate yourself – yes scientist hang out here from all over the world and discuss things and you can search the site and learn if you like
http://www.skepticalscience.com/
The O sum game ends: November, 2012!
This is a long way from the last that we’ll hear on this issue. It is not dead, not could it be. I’m no Obama fan, but look: the Congress put a time-limit on approval. The Administration said, the time-limit was too short, so no, but in doing so retains the initiative. At the time of its choosing, it will approve the pipeline. They’ll look prudent, and the Republicans will look like they want to play political games rather than make a thorough, clear-headed evaluation of the project. An unforced error by the Republicans in Congress.
Carbon and Life
It is hard to overstate the importance of carbon; its unique capacity for forming multiple bonds and chains at low energies makes life as we know it possible, and justifies an entire major branch of chemistry – organic chemistry – dedicated to its compounds. In fact, most of the compounds known to science are carbon compounds, often called organic compounds because it was in the context of biochemistry that they were first studied in depth.
What makes carbon so special is that every carbon atom is eager to bond with as many as four other atoms. This makes it possible for long chains and rings to be formed out of them, together with other atoms – almost always hydrogen, often oxygen, sometimes nitrogen, sulfur or halides. The study of these is the basis of organic chemistry; the compounds carbon forms with metals are generally considered inorganic.
Chains and rings are fundamental to the way carbon-based life forms – that is, all known life-forms – build themselves. Silicon is capable of forming the same sorts of bonds and structures, but opinion is divided on whether silicon-based life forms are a realistic prospect – in part because it needs higher energies to form them, and in part because whereas carbon dioxide (one of the main by-products of respiration, a process essential to all known life) is a gas and therefore easy to remove from the body, its counterpart silicon dioxide (silica) has an inconveniently high melting point, posing a serious waste disposal problem for any would-be silicon-based life form.
Last time I looked, North America – has winter and in the summer, when its not winter – unbearable heat. Seems to me the old saying, coined by Ralph Klein (premier of Alberta) – “let them freeze in the dark”, applies to this situation. Darwin Award to Obama and his Democractic lapdogs. Cheers.
The phrase was more like “Let the Eastern (Canadian) bastards freeze in the dark” and was in response to the 1980 National Energy Program, a disaster wrought by someone Flaming Liberal would have adored I’m sure – the Rt. Hon. Pierre Elliot Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada. Talk about a social program gone wrong but liberals love that kind of stuff regardless if it works or not.
Ralph Klein was mayor of Calgary at the time.
As for the precise number of jobs I think the more important issue is the ripple effect building and maintaining the pipeline will create now and in the future.
Gotta love flaming liberal. He is talking about refineries but if we actually listened to him we would watch him move the goal posts. Expect to hear I was for refineries until EPA report no. X or environmental group study B or that was before I knew company such and such associated with such and such got the contract. I am a reality based person and these reports are important to me.
Lets build the pipeline, build refineries and let creative destruction and the market work.
By the way has anyone actually studied how environmentally aware Saudia Arabia and Iran are? Does the Left actually care?
20,000 jobs? Guess you guys get what you deserve by believing a politician (Lynn Jenkins). Trans Canada’s 2008 application listed 3,500 to 4,200 jobs at PEAK construction. The 20,000 figure comes from a statement there would be 20,000 “employment years.”
#18 Andy: “The big danger is that Canada will opt to sell its oil to China…..” Well, yes. They’ll either build a pipeline to the west coast to sell product to China. Or, they’ll build Keystone XL to ship heavy crude to Gulf Coast refineries to refine the stuff to sell to Europe and Latin America. Guess you guys haven’t paid much attention to Trans Canada’s business plans and business plans of those refineries.
#14 Perry 1949: “Does anyone know what happened to that hole in the ozone we were creating……..Are we dead yet?
Answer is no, we’re not dead yet, thanks to President Ronald Reagan. In 1987, he signed the Montreal Protocols to phase out use of CFCs. The “hole” has been slowly closing since.
The Bakken oil will now have to be moved on the BNSF freight lined. This line is owned by Berkshire Hathaway,a Warren Buffet Co. and Obama donator.
More money for Warren Buffet and his over taxed (1%) secretary.
Obama and his American liberals want the price of gasoline to reach at least ten dollars a gallon. In their mind this would save the environment because no one but rich liberals would be able to drive their cars. The rest of us will be forced into American government work camps or villages where anyone who opposes the new Liberal State will be punished severely. The Gores , Obamas, Kennedys, Obamas, Rockefellers, and Pelosis will be the only people who can afford to fly or drive anywhere. A new Liberal dictatorship is being built which will resemble 1984. America delenda est.
Of course the deluded, gullible, naive, brainwashed left wing moonbats, the complicit Lame Stream EneMedia and of course the Blacks who still support him slavishly, will continue to bleat that Obama really loves the USA and wants to protect and support it. Despite all the evidence of his actions to the contrary, such as the pipeline ban the wasting of $Billions on Green Nazi scam companies and all the bans on drilling and powers stations. Which are conveniently wrapped up in Green Nazi propaganda BS to confuse the hard of thinking.
We are living in age age where the “New Luddites” reign supreme only now they are called ‘Democrats’ and “Environmentalists” .
Given rarity of saints and the eternal flaws of human beings—and politicians in general—everyone with half a brain knew we were going to have an Obama presidency at some point. But even after it happened it remains a difficult issue to grapple with.
I have more than half a brain, but I think neither of us could have predicted that enough voters without one would assemble in 2008 to give us… this.
Dear Leader serves one purpose I’ve been able to detect so far… In comparison, he makes Billy Carter’s slow brother look good.
Most of the critics posting comments missed the obvious point concerning the crude oil issue. The product intended to be transported from Canada through the pipeline is tar liberated from tar bearing sand located in Canada. The tar sand project was purchased by and belongs to the Chinese. They paid good money and own 100% of the project.
When the tar is liberated from the ground, it is extra sour, long on sulphur, thus very corrosive, and long on sand, thus very abrasive. Corrosive and abrasive products will quickly eat through the best metal known to man. After the Chinese sour sandy tar is pumped through thousands of miles of pipeline, it will be delivered to Velero refineries located on the Texas Gulf Coast. The sandy tar product will be refined into diesel, jet fuel and heavier petroleum by products. Valero, in its role as a contract refiner will deliver the refined products to the Chinese designated end users. The products are not intended to be sold on the U.S. market.
Where is the benefit to the U.S.? Valero refineries are located on tax free real estate. The Chinese keep ownership of their corrosive tar sand from the mine in Canada, don’t sell it to Valero, in Texas, thus, they don’t pay taxes for transportation or refining until they use it in Asia or some off shore location. The U.S. and the States do not charge a value added tax. We charge sales tax. No tax charge to the manufacturer.
As long as the Canadians and the U.S. do not allow a pipeline, the corrosive tar sand costs too much for the Chinese to transport by truck. The specialized refineries, that can refine sour crude, are located on the Gulf Coast, not on the West Coast of Canada.
Why do we need to allow the Chinese to build a pipeline through the U.S. so that the refineries on the Gulf Coast can refine the Chinese fuel, so that the Chinese economy can benefit? How will the Canadians benefit from the Chinese mining the Chinese tar sand for use as a fuel in Asia? How will the Canadians collect a value added tax to the Chinese tar sand?
The U.S. and Canada are thinking like third world countries. Third world countries sell their natural resources so that the manufactured goods and refined natural resources ultimately are sold where the economies of first world nations get the most value out of the refined resource.
Obviously, the diesel produced from the Chinese tar sands, will be of greater political value to the customers of the Chinese Petroleum Company that are not located in the U.S. or Canada.
How does it benefit the interests of the people of the U.S. to make diesel fuel cheaper to the Chinese than the people of the U.S.
Wow, so much misinformation.
First, tar is a man made product. The Canadian Oil Sands are what is being discussed.
Second, The Chinese have invested in the Canadian Oil Sands bur have nowhere near majority or even controlling interest.
What is the benefit to the USA you ask? Maybe not sending untold billions to Middle Eastern contries who hate America to start.
Wait..why am I telling you this? You don’t care.
ROB GILLIES Associated Press
First Posted: January 03, 2012 – 9:30 am
Last Updated: January 03, 2012 – 3:32 pm
AAA
TORONTO — China will take over full ownership over a Canadian oil sands project for the first time after Athabasca Oil Sands Corp announced Tuesday it sold the remaining 40 percent of the MacKay River oil sands development to PetroChina for US$673 million.
The deal continues a trend that has seen China’s state-owned oil companies invest billions of dollars in exploration or production ventures in Canada, Africa, Latin America and elsewhere
But China’s state-owned oil companies have preferred to take non-operating or minority stakes in oil sands projects in Canada until this latest deal.
The deal does not need the approval from the Canadian government under the the Investment Canada Act.
Athabasca had previously sold PetroChina a 60 percent stake in two oil sands projects, including MacKay river, and the possibility of the Chinese taking over full ownership was included in that deal and approved by the Canadian government.
Athabasca CEO Sveinung Svarte said he exercised the option to sell the remaining stake in MacKay River because the company would rather focus on developing projects it wholly owns.
Although it is the first oil sands project to be fully owned by a Chinese firm, there have full ownership deals involving conventional oil and gas companies in Canada. Sinopec bought conventional oil and gas-focused Daylight Energy Ltd. in its entirety last year.
The sale comes shortly after Alberta regulators approved the project.
The first phase of the MacKay River project is expected to produce 35,000 barrels per day, eventually expanding to 150,000 barrels.
Construction of the project will begin next month with startup targeted for 2014.
China is the world’s second-biggest oil consumer and has a growing appetite for oil that may one day surpass that of the U.S. which views Canada’s oil sands as a pillar of its future energy needs.
Canada is increasingly looking to China to sell its vast oil reserves after the U.S. delayed a decision on the Keystone XL pipeline that would bring oil from Canada to refineries in the U.S. Gulf Coast.
Alberta has the world’s third largest oil reserves, more than 170 billion barrels. Daily production of 1.5 million barrels from the oil sands is expected to nearly triple to 3.7 million in 2025. Overall, Alberta has more oil than Russia or Iran. Only Saudi Arabia and Venezuela have more.
Canada’s only major oil export market is the U.S. But with the product of oil sands and pipeline delivery to the U.S. under perennial clouds of environmental objections, and with Asian demand growing, Canada wants to diversify its market, and China is eager to oblige.
The Chinese have urged the Canadian government to approve a pipeline to Canada’s Pacific coast so that tankers can ship oil sands crude to China. Sinopec, a Chinese state-controlled oil company, has a stake in a $5.5 billion plan drawn up by the Alberta-based Enbridge company to build the Northern Gateway Pipeline from Alberta to the Pacific coast province of British Columbia.
Sinopec also recently paid $4.6 billion for a 9 percent stake in Syncrude, Canada’s largest oil sands project. Taking partial ownership has been seen as a way for the Chinese companies to make their investments more politically palatable. Chinese state-owned CNOOC was stymied in its bid for U.S. oil and gas producer Unocal Corp. in 2005. It withdrew its $18.5 billion offer after U.S. lawmakers complained about how the sale would jeopardize national security.
Wenran Jiang, a political science professor at the University of Alberta and a senior fellow of the Asia Pacific Foundation, said the Athabasca deal shows that China knows that Canada is more welcoming to Chinese investment in recent years.
He said China would like to see the oil shipped to China eventually but is also content to produce more oil for the global marketplace at spot prices.
“It works out to be a very good equation with the Chinese capital coming in, with the Canadian jobs created and the oil produced and shipped to the United States,” he said.
If the Keystone XL pipeline is ultimately defeated, Warren Buffett, the BNSF Railway and the Transport Workers Union stand ready to ship one million barrels of toxic bitumen per day overland, along rivers and highways and through countless urban communities with complete disregard for any environmental concerns what so ever.
1) Rail transport will be more expensive that pipeline transmission.
2) Railroad transport will introduce more carbon into the atmosphere.
3) The likelihood of a major catastrophic bitumen spill is exponentially greater with above ground rail transport as opposed to an underground pipeline.
While I remain neutral on the Keystone XL issue, it appears that environmental issues are not best addressed by the defeat of the Keystone XL pipeline.
BEST QUOTE OF THE DECADE – from CZECH REPUBLIC OBSERVER
“The danger to America is not Barack Obama but a citizenry capable of entrusting an inexperienced man like him with the Presidency. It will be far easier to limit and undo the follies of an Obama Presidency than to restore the necessary common sense and good judgment to a depraved electorate willing to have such a man for their President. The problem is much deeper and far more serious than Mr. Obama, who is a mere symptom of what ails America . Blaming the prince of the fools should not blind anyone to the vast confederacy of fools that made him their prince. The Republic can survive a Barack Obama. It is less likely to survive a multitude of fools such as those who made him their President.
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