The closer I got to the Capitol Building in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the louder the chanting became…
I rounded a corner to find a small, disgruntled band of protesters standing their ground at the foot of the Capitol.
It was an interesting sight to see.
There were a cool dozen of them, at least — some wearing gas masks, others in plainclothes carrying poster boards larger than themselves, each with a witty turn of phrase.
I had a few minutes to kill before a meeting, so naturally I headed toward them to ask a few questions.
After only a few seconds of conversing with one gentleman in particular, I realized it wasn’t the slogan scrawled on the poster, his garb, or even the rhythmic beat to his chant that had me confused…
It was that he had absolutely no idea what hydraulic fracturing is about.
In fact, the only thing he could tell me was that it needed to be banned in the United States at all costs.
Throughout his entire rant (which had moved well beyond hydraulic fracturing), I couldn’t help but wonder how this guy doesn’t realize his entire world depends on oil.
Subconsciously, I began to make a list: the clothes on his back, the boots on his feet, and even the glasses he was wearing — barrels of oil are responsible for each of them.
The toothpaste he’d (hopefully) brushed with earlier that morning, his laundry detergent, the pillows he’d slept on the night before, and most obvious of all, the car he drove to the protest that morning…
The list goes on, but you get the picture.
The truth is we’re all spoiled on cheap energy. It would be hard to fathom where we’d be today without it.
One thing’s for sure: My friend on the steps of the Capitol Building wouldn’t be eating a California orange without having to pay an exorbitant price.
Now consider the fact that 90% of the new wells being drilled in the United States need to undergo some fracturing technique to reach oil and gas resources, or that 60% of the 1,968 oil and gas rigs on U.S. soil are drilling horizontally — all of which need to be fracked.
What you can count on is companies becoming increasingly efficient in tapping our energy reserves.
And that’s happening right now.
You see, we know where the oil and gas is here in the United States. We just have to find a better, more cost-effective way to get it.
That will be the game-changer for us.
And the investment opportunities that unfold as these discoveries take the stage will be nearly endless.
If you’re still looking for a starting point, here are a few ideas to get you started…
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Enjoy your weekend,
Keith Kohl
Editor, Energy and Capital
