Shell Oil President Is Clear on The Oil Industry's Agenda

"All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved. "
Sun Tzu


an excerpt from:

Salt Lake Tribune - Shell boss stumps for off-shore drilling

Shell Oil president John Hofmeister says it is possible for this country to approach energy independence but to do so it must embrace new fuel technologies and rethink existing policies preventing additional oil and gas development.
   
Hofmeister was in Salt Lake City last week as he neared the tail end of a 50-city "listening tour" to address the public's growing frustration and concern with high energy and gasoline prices, and record oil company profits.
   
He used the occasion to contend that there is an abundance of oil and gas resources available but public policy has declared it off-limits, noting that 85 percent of the outer continental shelf holding more than 100 billion barrels of oil and gas is closed to off-shore drilling.
   
"Right now, 66 percent of our daily [oil] consumption comes from imports, while we're refused the opportunity to develop our own resources," Hofmeister said. "And in denying access, it is causing us to be more dependent" on foreign sources of oil.
   
While acknowledging consumers' anger over oil company profits, he argued that Shell is making good use of that money. Shell Oil's parent company, the Hague-based Royal Dutch Shell, reported in late July that its income rose 18 percent in the second quarter of this year, to $8.7 billion, compared with $7.3 billion a year earlier.
   
The company said the increase primarily was linked toasset sales and strong earnings from its oil refining operations, which saw earnings jump to $3.9 billion from $3 billion in the same quarter of the previous year.
   
Hofmeister said that Shell Oil is investing record amounts into its system and is considering a major expansion of its refinery operations in Texas.