Talk is Cheap – Gas is Not: Cannon Introduces Legislation to End Dependence on Foreign Oil

Press Release

TALK IS CHEAP - GAS IS NOT CANNON INTRODUCES LEGISLATION TO END DEPENDENCE ON FOREIGN OIL

Congressman Chris Cannon (R-UT) today introduced legislation to allow the President to bypass the time consuming regulatory process, and begin extraction of oil from shale immediately. Proven oil shale reserves in the United States are at least three times as large as Saudi Arabian oil reserves.

Congressman Cannon has been a leader in oil shale development before it became a crisis.

Upon introducing this bill, Congressman Cannon said,

"Americans are tired of talk. They are also tired of bending one knee to Saudi princes and OPEC oil barons. We have more than enough oil in the United States to supply our energy needs and give the marketplace the opportunity to fund research and development into renewable and next generation fuels. Oil Shale development will create American jobs, foster American energy independence, and provide the time needed to spur American ingenuity to create our energy future."

Cannon continued, "Opening public lands for oil shale development is the first step. Developing ANWR, the Outer Continental Shelf, safe and clean nuclear power, and a moonshot for future fuels must all be a part of immediate energy action. All of these can be done, if only the Democrats and the extreme environmental lobby will get out of the way and let America do what it does best: innovate and produce.

- American consumers have increased their demand for oil by 12 percent in the last decade, but oil production has grown by less than one half of one percent. We import 64 percent of our oil today.

- Of the estimated 2.7 trillion barrels of oil held in the world's oil shale deposits, 2 trillion is scattered across the United States. That's more oil than all the countries in the Middle East combined. Estimates of the recoverable oil resource in place within the Green River Formation range from 1.2 to 1.8 trillion barrels. That is the equivalent of 1-2 times the total world crude oil reserves - triple the amount of oil reserves in Saudi Arabia.

- 1.2 trillion barrels of oil is enough oil to meet the current U.S. demands for more than 150 years.

- The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that the United States is the richest and most geographically concentrated oil shale and tar sands resource in the world.

- Oil shale could allow the U.S. to become the world's single biggest oil source, ahead of all the OPEC members. The Department of Energy's Office of Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves estimates oil shale's direct economic value to the nation might approach $1 trillion by 2020, not counting other equally or more valuable strategic and national security benefits that may not be fully measured in dollars.

- Total recoverable deposits represent a resource valued at nearly $100 trillion dollars at current oil prices, and considerably more at projected prices.

In addition, when it comes to supporting domestic energy independence, Republicans have demonstrated a clear record:

ANWR Exploration

House Republicans: 91% Supported

House Democrats: 86% Opposed

Coal-to-Liquid

House Republicans: 97% Supported

House Democrats: 78% Opposed

Oil Shale Exploration

House Republicans: 90% Supported

House Democrats: 86% Opposed

Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Exploration

House Republicans: 81% Supported

House Democrats: 83% Opposed

Refinery Increased Capacity

House Republicans: 97% Supported

House Democrats: 96% Opposed

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