Thu Nov 19, 2009 12:02pm EST
By Tom Doggett
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Executives from two major oil companies told Congress on Thursday that the U.S. government should open more offshore areas to oil and natural gas drilling so America can rely less on foreign suppliers.
“There is some hypocrisy in locking these resources away while relying on resources produced in other countries,” said Marvin Odum, the President of Shell Oil Co., the U.S. unit of Royal Dutch Shell Plc.
“Instead, we should embrace policies that provide access to our own oil and gas resources,” Odum told the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee at hearing on offshore energy production.
The U.S. Interior Department is considering a five-year plan that might open new offshore areas to drilling.
But many environmental groups oppose expanded offshore drilling, fearing oil spills could result, especially when energy companies move into the deeper waters of the Gulf of Mexico where platforms are susceptible to hurricanes.
“The potentially irreversible effects of oil pollution on marine ecosystems and their dependent economies do not justify the potential short-term economic gains that might accrue from offshore oil and gas development,” said Jeffrey Short with the international marine conservation group Oceana.
The industry says improved drilling technology allows oil companies to search for supplies in an environmentally friendly way.
“These advances enable more production while reducing environmental impacts and allowing for efficient use of existing facilities and infrastructure,” David Rainey, Vice President for Gulf of Mexico Exploration at BP America, the U.S. unit of BP Plc.
“Finding oil and gas for the future requires exploring in areas that are ever deeper and more complex,” Rainey said.
The executives also said oil and gas supplies will still be needed even while the United States and other countries develop plans to fight global warming and promote use of more renewable energy sources like wind and solar power.
“We must stop ignoring the fact that oil and gas will play a major part in meeting America’s energy demands for several decades as we transition to a more sustainable energy future,” said Shell’s Odum.
(Reporting by Tom Doggett; Editing by David Gregorio)
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This website and sisters royaldutchshellplc.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.
Royal Dutch Shell conspired directly with Hitler, financed the Nazi Party, was anti-Semitic and sold out its own Dutch Jewish employees to the Nazis. Shell had a close relationship with the Nazis during and after the reign of Sir Henri Deterding, an ardent Nazi, and the founder and decades long leader of the Royal Dutch Shell Group. His burial ceremony, which had all the trappings of a state funeral, was held at his private estate in Mecklenburg, Germany. The spectacle (photographs below) included a funeral procession led by a horse drawn funeral hearse with senior Nazis officials and senior Royal Dutch Shell directors in attendance, Nazi salutes at the graveside, swastika banners on display and wreaths and personal tributes from Adolf Hitler and Reichsmarschall, Hermann Goring. Deterding was an honored associate and supporter of Hitler and a personal friend of Goring.
Deterding was the guest of Hitler during a four day summit meeting at Berchtesgaden. Sir Henri and Hitler both had ambitions on Russian oil fields. Only an honored personal guest would be rewarded with a private four day meeting at Hitler’s mountain top retreat.
IN JULY 2007, MR BILL CAMPBELL (ABOVE, A RETIRED GROUP AUDITOR OF SHELL INTERNATIONAL SENT AN EMAIL TO EVERY UK MP AND MEMBER OF THE HOUSE OF LORDS: 
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A head-cut image of Alfred Donovan (now deceased) appears courtesy of The Wall Street Journal.
