<Some preliminary assessments The Oil Drum Why This Matters: Katrina and Peak Oil>

A Welcome Back Open Thread

Posted by Prof. Goose on August 29, 2005 - 5:31pm

It's been one hell of a day here at TOD. I'll leave the technical stuff to SG to explain if he wishes to, but I think our ISP was unable to cope with all of the (very welcome) traffic from our Katrina coverage. We'll see once we investigate further. We think the problem has been resolved and we really apologize for the inconvenience, we want you to be able to rely on us.

So, here's an open thread. Please note the Red Cross box in the upper right hand corner.

A Welcome Back Open Thread

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8 comments

Donal on August 29, 2005 - 5:46pm Permalink | Comments top
I read on Energy Bulletin that Roscoe Bartlett is having a Peak Oil morning conference on Sept 26th right here in Frederick.  Deffeyes, Simmons, Heinberg, Wulfinghoff, Spears and Howe are scheduled to speak about 20 minutes each.  So I called Bartlett's office and the staffer wanted to know how I already knew.:-)  I've got our little Peak Oil Awareness group coming.  You can RSVP via email:

http://www.bartlett.house.gov/Events.asp

Glenn on August 29, 2005 - 6:07pm Permalink | Parent | Comments top
Spears? You mean Britney, right? :)

Can we have coverage though some Oil Drummer? Are you volunteering Donal?

Donal on August 30, 2005 - 4:25am Permalink | Parent | Comments top
I'm definitely going, and I'll certainly post my observations.  I have a few questions in mind for the roundtable.  Any suggestions?
Dave Cohen on August 29, 2005 - 7:02pm Permalink | Parent | Comments top
OK, an early nomination for Roscoe Bartlett as Time Man of Year!
MikeCapone on August 29, 2005 - 5:49pm Permalink | Comments top
I linked to TOD from Treehugger. Hope that what knocked you down was something else. We're not in the habit of slashdotting sites yet.
Anonymous (not verified) on August 29, 2005 - 11:12pm Permalink | Comments top
Could someone explain to me why crude oil prices soars if refining capability is reduced? Shouldn't reduced or limited refining capability mean excess crude oil supply, meaning lower crude oil prices?
Ben on August 30, 2005 - 7:15am Permalink | Parent | Comments top
Anonymous, I've wondered the same thing.

In this instance (Katrina) it appears there could be damage to rigs and pipelines, and the LOOP.  If this is the case, then it will reduce the available crude supply since domestic production can be diminished and imports can't be offloaded as easily (or at all, until there's a workaround)

We won't know until everything is checked out, and the oil cos have a vested interest in not shouting about gloom and doom.  After Ivan it was "oh, good, it missed most of the oil fields" but the reality was that it did cause enough damage to affect operations significantly.  But it's hard to know one way or the other the morning after the storm.

Anonymous (not verified) on August 30, 2005 - 3:33pm Permalink | Parent | Comments top
It'll be interesting to see what happens with the US being physically incapable of importing crude at the rate it requires.  The price of crude in the US will be significantly more valuable that elsewhere in the world yet NYMEX is essentially a global commodities exchange.  I wonder, will the price of NYMEX diverge significantly from Brent?

A Welcome Back Open Thread

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8 comments