America’s thirst for OPEC oil comes at a steep price.
Nefarious groups operating in countries the U.S. buys oil from, such as Qatar and Kuwait, are funding ISIS and al Qaeda. These terrorist groups are benefiting from these countries’ oil and gas wealth, much the same way cartels are in our hemisphere. Last year, we bought 122 million barrels of crude oil and petroleum products from those two countries, and 1.36 billion barrels from their friends in the OPEC cartel, at a cost of $132 billion. We are paying for both sides of the endless Middle East war. And Washington says we’re unlikely to stop. The U.S. Department of Energy’s best guess is that we’ll still need to import 25 to 32 percent of our oil every year from now until 2040.That $132 billion to OPEC only accounts for oil. The Pentagon says the war against ISIS will cost another $2.5 billion to $3.6 billion annually for years to come. Other estimates range as high as $22 billion a year, to say nothing of lives risked.We could kick our OPEC habit and bite the hands that feed ISIS if we weaned our vehicles off of gasoline and diesel. The transportation sector — cars and trucks — accounts for 72 percent of U.S. petroleum usage.America’s oil and gas industry has achieved stunning gains in production. But we must focus on demand opportunities as well and look to inject some serious fuel competition into the transportation sector. We should start with natural gas.America’s vehicles need to run on American natural gas. Domestic production meets 96 percent of our natural gas needs, and domestic reserves stretch out for 100 years. And Btu for Btu, natural gas costs four times less than crude oil.Instead of sending $132 billion to OPEC, let’s invest that money here and resist OPEC dominance. We need to develop a strong energy policy that clearly promotes domestic production and further strengthens American energy independence. What we’re lacking is national leadership on energy. Fortunately, we’re starting to see that develop in Texas.During fiscal 2014, Texas natural gas motor fuel displaced 16 million gallons of gasoline and diesel, more than double the forecast. The number of natural gas fueling stations increased by 50 percent, to 104. For the first time, the state’s 7,148 natural gas vehicles outnumbered those powered by any other alternative fuel.During those same 12 months, Texas’ investment in natural gas vehicles and fueling stations totaled $174 million — $95 million in vehicles and $79 million in stations, and employment in the state’s oil and gas industry grew by 6.2 percent, to an all-time high of 297,800.At Texas’ rates, if we matched the $3 billion a year we’re spending to fight ISIS with $3 billion of investment here at home, we could buy 102,000 NGVs or 1,500 natural gas stations. The amount we spent on OPEC oil in 2013 — $132 billion — is enough to buy 4.5 million NGVs or 66,000 natural gas stations. That’s enough vehicles to back out 10 billion gallons of gasoline and diesel a year, or to add a natural gas island to more than half of the 121,000 gas stations in the U.S. At a price spread of $1.50/gallon, that would save consumers $15 billion a year in fuel costs.Now is the time for state and national energy policies that don’t focus solely on export opportunities with our expanding natural gas and crude oil resources. We’d be better off strengthening our national security and rebuilding our economy based on affordable, clean, abundant natural gas. T. Boone Pickens is chairman of BP Capital. David Porter is on the Texas Railroad Commission.Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
