(Wall Street Journal) William Tucker - The Saudis possess 25% of the world's proven reserves. They routinely proclaim that, for at least the next 50 years, they could easily double their current output of 10 million barrels a day. But is this true? Almost 90% of Saudi production comes from six giant fields, all of them discovered before 1967. The six, all producing at or near capacity for almost 40 years, are showing signs of age. All require extensive water injection to maintain their current flow. Matthew R. Simmons, a Texas investment banker with 20 years' experience in oil, concludes in Twilight in the Desert that Saudi production may have already peaked.
2005-06-28 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive