Tough Weekend
This past weekend I joined my son and heir (apparent) joined six of his buddies on a hike in the Hatcher Pass area of the Talkeetna Mountains. Once, a very long time ago, I was a pretty damn good boulder hopper. Even with a full pack. This trip proved that time takes it toll. Bruises and a jammed left thumb were the result of a couple of days hiking, climbing, and scrambling up the reaches of Fairangel Creek. Some of the prettiest and most accessable country in Alaska. Not that I am complaining. Any day out of doors beats a day in the office.
The big news in these parts was the announcement that BP is shutting down its Prudhoe Bay field. BP operates the field for its sisters: ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobile. BP has a history of neglecting maintainance in lieu of risk management. The strategy backfired in the worst sort of way. A series of small spills and leaks over the past winter brought their neglect to the attention of regulators. They are now under a self imposed shut-down until they can repair the flow lines. I say "self imposed" but in reality they could probably see the writing on the wall. If they didn't I am pretty sure that either the state or the federal regulators would have stepped in and done the deed for them. Not only are "out" revenue against their share of some 400,000 bbls of crude oil at a time that crude prices are at a peak, they have also cut into the revenue streams of their sisters, greatly impacted the revenue base of the State of Alaska as well as placing further pressure on the price of crude oil. In the giant scheme of things, 400K barrels isn't that all that much world wide but perception is everything in the market place. Reports of a several month shut down are probably on the mark. Winter is not a good time to be working replacing pipelines or cleaning up spilled crude. The environmental consulting firms have got to be licking their chops.
To their credit, they did issue an apology.
Other news was the passing of Susan Butcher -the great dog musher and mulitple Iditarod Race winner- to cancer. She was an icon and the state morns her passing.
The big news in these parts was the announcement that BP is shutting down its Prudhoe Bay field. BP operates the field for its sisters: ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobile. BP has a history of neglecting maintainance in lieu of risk management. The strategy backfired in the worst sort of way. A series of small spills and leaks over the past winter brought their neglect to the attention of regulators. They are now under a self imposed shut-down until they can repair the flow lines. I say "self imposed" but in reality they could probably see the writing on the wall. If they didn't I am pretty sure that either the state or the federal regulators would have stepped in and done the deed for them. Not only are "out" revenue against their share of some 400,000 bbls of crude oil at a time that crude prices are at a peak, they have also cut into the revenue streams of their sisters, greatly impacted the revenue base of the State of Alaska as well as placing further pressure on the price of crude oil. In the giant scheme of things, 400K barrels isn't that all that much world wide but perception is everything in the market place. Reports of a several month shut down are probably on the mark. Winter is not a good time to be working replacing pipelines or cleaning up spilled crude. The environmental consulting firms have got to be licking their chops.
To their credit, they did issue an apology.
Other news was the passing of Susan Butcher -the great dog musher and mulitple Iditarod Race winner- to cancer. She was an icon and the state morns her passing.
posted by Biligaana at 10:38 PM
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