EnergyFactor By ExxonMobil | Pespectives has a new home

The simple math of removing the exports ban

Lift the ban on crude oil exports and you’ll see an immediate rush of economic activity:

  • An additional $26 billion to $47 billion in annual GDP related to the crude oil supply chain
  • From 124,000 to 240,000 new jobs per year between 2016 and 2030 in the companies and industries that make up the supply chain
  • An overall boost to the American economy of $86 billion to $170 billion in additional annual GDP
  • Creation of between 394,000 and 859,000 new jobs every year nationwide

And you’ll also see lower gasoline prices at the pump.

Those are the conclusions of a new analysis by the consultancy IHS (full disclosure: ExxonMobil was one of many sponsors providing support for the study).

This report is the latest in a series of invaluable studies by IHS measuring the economic impact of America’s shale revolution, as well as the promise shale energy holds if policymakers craft policies to leverage its opportunities.

What this latest effort makes clear is that the current ban on crude oil exports exacts a steep cost. The ban on exports effectively “reduces U.S. oil production, supply chain activity, and job growth, but raises U.S. gasoline prices.”

Indeed, IHS suggests that eliminating the export ban would lower gasoline prices by as much as 8 cents per gallon.

At a Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee hearing yesterday, Chairman Lisa Murkowski needed just one sentence to put the issue in context: “Our nation’s energy landscape has changed dramatically in the last decade alone.” Shale energy is ushering in an era of energy abundance – quite a turn from the notions of resource scarcity and limits that have guided much of the nation’s thinking for decades.

The changed landscape Sen. Murkowski mentioned requires a new outlook and some significant changes in our public policies – policies which are growing more outmoded and anachronistic with every new barrel of oil unlocked in America’s shale fields.

This new study from IHS shows a good place to start.


No Comments

Already have a username? Log in to comment. First-time commenting? Sign up to create your username. It's easy, and we won't share your information.

  • Worth a deeper look...