Show RESURRECTING AN ANOLD ANOLD ANOLD OLD BOGEY A scare rumor has been going the rounds to the effect that our crude oil reserves will be ex exhausted hausted in 12 years That if if true should be enough to scare anyone Fortunately however this p particular forecast is based on some of the shakiest reasoning imaginable as an officer of one of our leading oil companies has pointed out First of all lI he said the 1 12 1 year figure is obtained by dividing dividing divid divid- ing our proven prO ell underground reserves reserves reserves re re- serves serves by the annual rate of con con- But in the last 32 years the oil industry has produced and sold barrels built up reserves of barrels barrels barrels bar bar- and yet it has never had more than a 16 years' years known supply supply supply sup sup- ply on hand at any anyone one time As Asa a result of intensive exploratory work more and more oil fields are being found and andare are developed as the need arises Second it would be physic physically impossible to fo produce our present reserves reserves in any such period as a j I I I J I J I J I dozen years Some of our major fields will be producing 50 to 75 years from now Third all the sombre forecasts o of impending shortages take into inlo consideration only current methods methods methods meth meth- of or production The whole industry is concentrating on better methods Relatively n w technical cal developments in this direction have rejuvenated depleted depicted or marginally marginally mar mar- operated fields and at atthe atthe atthe the same time made possible the recovery of a much higher percentage percentage percentage per per- of the oil The prophets of doom who produce produce produce pro pro- duce no oil have forecast oil shortages shortages shortages short short- ages ever since I the he industry be be- gan Those shortages just haven't developed despite oil consumption consumption tion at a level which would have been inconceivable even a few years ago And the best ties tics are convinced that the future futures s situation will be the same |