from AlterNet:
Enron Redux? Industry Insiders Say Natural Gas Drilling Is a Ponzi SchemeIf you've been following our ongoing coverage of gas drilling and the practice of hydraulic fracturing or "fracking," then you already know that there has been huge environmental fallout and the idea that natural gas is a green energy solution has been roundly debunked. But now the industry is suffering yet another setback -- and it's coming from the inside.
The New York Times has spend the last 6 months collecting emails and information from industry insiders that reveal that the gas drilling industry's economic prospects are not all they're cracked up to be. Here's a few quotes from the 480+ pages of emails the Times has made available:
"The word in the world of independents is that shale plays are just a giant Ponzi schemes and the economics just do not work." -- IHS Drilling Data
"It looks to me that the hype about these plays is creating a false sense of security for the American public." -- conversation between petroleum geologists
"After buying production for over 20 years hopefully I know the characteristics of the great wells (flat declines curves, low operating costs, large production) and as you know the shale plays have none of these. The herd mentality into the shale will eventually end possibly like the sub prime mortgage did." -- an official at Anglo-European Energy
The emails reveal that shale fields are not all they are cracked up to be. Ian Urbina writes for the Times, "In the e-mails, energy executives, industry lawyers, state geologists and market analysts voice skepticism about lofty forecasts and question whether companies are intentionally, and even illegally, overstating the productivity of their wells and the size of their reserves." ..............(more)
The complete piece is at:
http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/625509/enron_redux_industry_insiders_say_natural_gas_drilling_is_a_ponzi_scheme/
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