Shell Oil Co. president said Monday his industry isn't to blame for the soaring prices of gasoline and said America must produce for more domestic oil even in spite of the fact that biofuels and other alternative sources gather pace
Shell Oil Co. president said Monday his industry isn't to blame for the soaring prices of gasoline and said America must produce for more domestic oil even in spite of the fact that biofuels and other alternative sources gather pace.
Regarding an alternative-fuels conference in Sacramento Mr. John Hofmeister addressed with following words: "We see no alternative" in the short run, he said in his keynote speech to the Low Carbon Fuels conference. He hailed the potential of new forms of ethanol and other futuristic fuels but also delivered an old-school message: Conventional fuel from crude oil will continue to dominate for the foreseeable future.
And unless companies like Shell are allowed to produce more oil from domestic sources, the industry will have to import more and prices will stay high, he said. Although critics have been blasting the oil companies for record profits, Hofmeister said oil companies can't be faulted for prices that hit a record-high national average of $3.37 a gallon for self-serve regular this week.
Rather, the high cost of crude, which closed Monday at $111.76 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, is the major culprit, he said in an interview. Crude is responsible for some 70 percent of the price of gasoline, he said.
But Hofmeister said America must develop alternatives and drill for more oil at the same time. In fact, if domestic drilling doesn't pick up, millions of Americans will suffer the burden of ever-higher prices.
