Beyond the Political Theatre There is OIL- US/UK Interests In IraQ/N

[Jcrowley]

USA

Oil Consumption in North America

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Currently, the United States consumes 19.6 million barrels per day, of oil, which is more than 25% of the world's total. As a result, the U.S produces one fourth of the world's carbon emissions. Despite predictions that the U.S. will exhaust it's supply of oil in as little as forty years, the demand is on the increase, and is predicted to continue increasing, because of the ever increasing population.
U.S. Oil Production

The United States produced enough oil to supply it's own demand until 1970. In that year the U.S. had to start importing oil to meet the demand. The oil production for 2000 is expected to average 5.8 million barrels per day of crude oil. The production for 1999 was 5.9 million barrels per day. After the oil price collapse of 1985/1986, U.S. oil production declined dramatically. Oil production in 2000 is down by 24% from 1985. However, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), oil production is expected to increase by 70,000 barrels per day, or 1.1% in 2001. There is little to no chance of discovering any significant new onshore oil fields in the U.S.

Oil Reserves

According to the EIA, the United States has 21 billion barrels of proved oil reserves as of January 1, 2000. The U.S. uses about 6.6 billion barrels per year. That is only enough oil to last the U.S. about three and a half years without importing oil from other countries. 84% of the reserves are concentrated in four states. Texas has 25%, both onshore, and offshore. Alaska has 24%, California has 21%, and Louisiana has 14% onshore, and offshore. Since 1990, U.S. oil reserves have dropped about 20%. New oil discoveries made in 1999 were made almost entirely in the Gulf of Mexico, and Alaska. (321 million barrels). All other discoveries were extensions of existing oil fields, or new reservoirs discovered in old fields. (404 million barrels).

http://maps.unomaha.edu/Peterson/funda/Sidebar/OilConsumption.html

IRAN

The vast majority of Iran's crude oil reserves are located in giant onshore fields in the southwestern Khuzestan region near the Iraqi border and the Persian Gulf. Iran has 32 producing oil fields, of which 25 are onshore and 7 offshore. Major onshore fields include the following: Ahwaz-Asmari (700,000 bbl/d); Bangestan (around 245,000 bbl/d current production, with plans to increase to 550,000 bbl/d), Marun (520,000 bbl/d), Gachsaran (560,000 bbl/d), Agha Jari (200,000 bbl/d), Karanj-Parsi (200,000 bbl/d); Rag-e-Safid (180,000 bbl/d); Bibi Hakimeh (130,000 bbl/d), and Pazanan (70,000 bbl/d). Major offshore fields include: Dorood (130,000 bbl/d); Salman (130,000 bbl/d); Abuzar (125,000 bbl/d); Sirri A&E (95,000 bbl/d); and Soroush/Nowruz (60,000 bbl/d).

According to the Oil and Gas Journal (1/1/04), Iran holds 125.8 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, roughly 10% of the world's total, up from 90 billion barrels in 2003. In October 1999, Iran announced that it had made its biggest oil discovery in 30 years, a giant onshore field called Azadegan located in the southwestern province of Khuzestan, a few miles east of the border with Iraq. Reportedly, the Azadegan field contains proven crude oil reserves of 26 billion barrels. In July 2004, Iran's oil minister stated that the country's proven oil reserves had increased again, to 132 billion barrels, following new discoveries in the Kushk and Hosseineih fields in Khuzestan province.

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/oplan-1002.htm

IRAQ

Spoils of War
Oil, the U.S.-Middle East Free Trade Area and the Bush Agenda
By Antonia Juhasz

Remember oil? That thing we didn’t go to war in Iraq for? Now with his war under attack, even President George W. Bush has gone public, telling reporters last August, “ failed Iraq … would give the terrorists and extremists an additional tool besides safe haven, and that is revenues from oil sales.” Of course, Bush not only wants to keep oil out of his enemies’ hands, he also wants to put it into the hands of his friends.

The President’s concern over Iraq’s oil is shared by the Iraq Study Group, which on December 6 released its much-anticipated report. While the mainstream press focused on the report’s criticism of Bush’s handling of the war and the report’s call for (potential) removal of (most) U.S. troops (maybe) by 2008, ignored was the report’s focus on Iraq’s oil. Page 1, chapter 1 laid out in no uncertain terms Iraq’s importance to the Middle East, the United States and the world with this reminder: “It has the world’s second-largest known oil reserves.” The group then proceeds to give very specific and radical recommendations as to what should be done to secure those reserves.

<snip>

...only 17 of Iraq’s 80 known oil fields have been developed, Allawi’s proposal would put 64 percent of Iraq’s oil into the hands of foreign firms. However, if a further 100 billion barrels are discovered, as is widely predicted, foreign companies could control 81 percent of Iraq’s oil—or 87 percent if, as the Oil Ministry predicts, 200 billion barrels are found.

http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/2979/spoils_of_war/

''If Zarqawi and bin Laden gain control of Iraq they would create a new training ground for future terrorist attacks. They'd seize oil fields to fund their ambitions.''
- George W. Bush

Iraq deemed world's greatest oil prospect

Iraq is the greatest oil prospect in the world, with huge undeveloped oil fields and enough reserves to meet the world's needs for many years, an energy expert said Wednesday. Using modern equipment and technology, Iraqi oil production could exceed output from Saudi Arabia, said Dobie Langenkamp, director of the National Energy-Environment Law and Policy Institute at the University of Tulsa.

Iraq has the second largest oil reserves in the world

Iraq has the world's second-largest proven oil reserves, with 113 billion barrels. However, the true amount of reserves may be closer to 300 billion barrels because the country's oil fields have not been thoroughly explored, Langenkamp said. The supplies, if developed, could help meet the world's increasing thirst for oil. Global oil consumption is projected to rise to 119 million barrels a day by 2025, up from about 80 million barrels now, the Department of Energy estimates.

<snip>

Iraq's oil reserves are six times greater than the reserves of the Caspian Sea and four times greater than US reserves, he said. "We need that Iraqi oil. The world needs it," Langenkamp said. "The question is where are we going to get the $50 billion to develop it."

Iraq is now producing about 2 million barrels of oil a day. But that number could rise to 10 million barrels if Western oil companies were allowed to develop the country's vast reserves. The giant oil fields of Saudi Arabia produce between 9 million and 10 million barrels of oil a day, Langenkamp said. "There's no reason why Iraq can't be in that category," he said.

http://www.iraqdevelopmentprogram.org/idp/news/new327.htm

[Jcrowley]

1. Charts and Maps

[Mojorabbit]

2. Great post!

Thanks. After the oil wars, on to the water wars.

[Jcrowley]

3. Thanks for that

Folks who are trapped in the media circus interpretations of events will remain confused as to the Why's of the whole thing.

[WinkyDink]

4. And the continuing land wars, this time for the ethanol biz.

[LibertyorDeath]

5. Excellent post

Thanx!

Rec!

[Jcrowley]

6. Oil fields and military bases

Go here to see the location of the Iraqi oil fields:
http://www.judicialwatch.org/printer_iraqi-oil-maps.shtml

And here's a map of US permanent military bases:


http://www.fcnl.org/iraq/bases.htm

"Please juxtapose Iraq’s oil map with that of the upcoming permanent American military bases, keep in mind the 30 years provision of Iraq’s Hydrocarbon law, tie it in with the other little fact of these bases being called ‘enduring’ military bases by Pentagon and try calculating a time frame for American forces’ withdrawal from Iraq."

[LibertyorDeath]

8. The most obvious are the bases in the North around Mosul

they correspond very well with the oil fields.

If the Oil in the ME ran dry tonight America would be packing for home
in the morning.

[malaise]

7. It was always about oil

They never fooled me.

[Jcrowley]

10. More info- spread the word

There is more to add here; the widespread use of advanced extraction techniques like water-injection and horizontal-brush drilling are the hallmarks of field maturity and imminent production collapse. It is important to note that Iraq’s oil fields are easily extractable because the other great world oil fields are at death’s door, including Saudi Arabia’s great mother, Ghawar. Ghawar is by far the largest conventional oil field ever discovered. Since first tapped in 1948, Ghawar has produced some 60 billion barrels of oil and accounted for 60-65% of Saudi production from 1948-2005. While actual field by field production numbers remain a Saudi State secret, Ghawar is estimated to produce more than five million barrels per day or 6.5% of the planet’s daily production total of 84 million barrels.

The writers at the Oil Drum, a data driven oil analysis website, after assessing the production data from several independent reporting agencies, claim that Saudi production is down a whopping 8% in 2006 from 2005 numbers. The decline would have been closer to 14% without the addition of the Haradh III mega-project. They assert that Saudi Arabia has now officially peaked and that the pace of production decline there is likely to accelerate. Remember, Ghawar accounts for 60% of Saudi production.
Here’s the latest on other fields around the globe:

“Kuwaiti oil production from the world’s second-largest field (Burgan) is ‘exhausted’ and falling after almost six decades of pumping” according to the chairman of the Kuwaiti state oil company. The L.A. times tells us that “Production at Cantarell, the world’s second-largest oil complex, which provides about 60% of Mexico’s crude, averaged 1.78 million barrels a day in 2006. That’s a 13% drop from 2005.” The famous North Sea basin and it gigantic Forties Field, the oil find that made Britain a petroleum exporter for the past 20 years, is about to experience a precipitous production decline. These fields and others like them have fueled the global capitalist system now enshrined and deified in American mass-culture. Our own Southern oil fields took only 40 years to outlive their usefulness from 1930 to 1970.

Back in 2000 China’s only super-giant field, Da Qing was also at death’s door. This is interesting to note because prior to Unocal’s merge with Chevron Corporation on August 10, 2005, the Chinese government attempted a hostile buyout (through CNOOC Ltd., which they control 70% of) to gain control of Unocal. This goes counter to your claim of other oil producing countries not wanting to touch Iraqi oil contracts:
“And that is that under the new law oil majors such as BP and Shell in Britain, and Exxon and Chevron in the US, would be able to sign deals of up to 30 years to extract Iraq’s oil, a kind of contract which other oil producing countries do not want to touch by a mile long pole.”

[leftchick]

9. after bombing the shit out of Iran

how in the world will they be able to pump out oil? Let's take Iraq for example. :eyes:

I mean really, these people live in LaLa land.

Excellent post Jc. Sadly the inmates are still running the asylum.