Energy exploration still yielding new discoveries
Most people probably believe that the age of exploration — at least on this planet — ended long ago. It’s tempting to assume that with today’s advanced technology, every corner of the earth has been mapped, scanned, and scoured for every available resource.
In reality, that’s not necessarily true. Several stories over the past week remind us that major new discoveries of energy resources are still occurring to this day:
- The Arctic - The U.S. Geological Survey last week released a report which estimated that there are 90 billion barrels of untapped oil in the Arctic region.
The figures from the USGS are said to be the first estimate of the energy available north of the Arctic circle.
According to the survey, the Arctic holds about 13% of the world’s undiscovered oil, 30% of the undiscovered natural gas, and 20% of the undiscovered natural gas liquids.
This is likely to further spur major Arctic nations (including Canada, Russia, the United States, and Denmark) to speed up preparations for a possible major military confrontation over control of Arctic energy reserves. BBC News reported in 2007 that several countries were already gearing up for the “coming Arctic wars.”
- Greenland - Although climate change threatens to have negative consequences in many parts of the world, the NYTimes reported yesterday that Greenland is cheering the initial stages of the thawing of its coasts for both economic and political reasons:
A Danish protectorate since 1721, Greenland has long sought to cut its ties with its colonizer. But while proponents of complete independence face little opposition at home or in Copenhagen, they haven’t been able to overcome one crucial calculation: the country depends on Danish assistance for more than 40 percent of its gross domestic product. “The independence wish has always been there,” says Aleqa Hammond, Greenland’s minister for finance and foreign affairs. “The reason we have never realized it is because of the economics.”
[...]But the real promise lies in what may be found under the ice. Near the town of Uummannaq, about halfway up Greenland’s coast, retreating glaciers have uncovered pockets of lead and zinc. Gold and diamond prospectors have flooded the island’s south. Alcoa is preparing to build a large aluminum smelter. The island’s minerals are becoming more accessible even as global commodity prices are soaring. And with more than 80 percent of the land currently iced over, the hope is that the island has just begun to reveal its riches.
Offshore, where the Arctic Ocean is rapidly thawing, expectations are even higher. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that Greenland’s northeastern waters could contain 31 billion barrels of undiscovered oil and gas. On the other side of the island, the waters separating it from Canada could yield billions of barrels more. And while Greenland is still considered an oil exploration frontier, Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Canada’s Husky Energy and Cairn Energy and Sweden’s PA Resources are already ramping up exploration.
In November, Greenlanders will vote on a referendum that would leverage global warming into a path to independence…
- Virginia - Yes, Virginia. The WSJ reported this weekend that the largest undeveloped uranium deposit in the United States (and seventh-largest in the world) was just found in Pittsylvania County in south central Virginia (which is less than 200 miles from William & Mary, by the way).
The only glitch — Virginia is one of four states that ban uranium mining (Virginia’s was enacted in 1984, amid anti-nuclear fears after the Three Mile Island accident in 1979, despite the fact that uranium mining is relatively harmless, and is in fact much safer than coal mining).
A subsidiary of the French nuclear giant Areva operates a fuel fabrication facility in Lynchburg 50 miles from Chatham. It has been praised by Gov. Tim Kaine, a Democrat, as a good corporate citizen. The state is also home to four commercial nuclear reactors, which provide Virginians with 35% of their electricity. And, of course, the U.S. Navy operates nuclear ships out of Norfolk, Va.
The Coles deposit (named for the 200-acre farm that sits on top of the ore) is thought to hold over 130 million tons of uranium — about twice the annual consumption of all 104 U.S. nuclear reactors combined.
AND HERE’S NANCY PELOSI:
http://www.gopusa.com/commentary/guest/2008/hl_07291.shtml