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Battalion/Page 1|
February 3,
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Drilling activity may drop again
United Press International
DALLAS — T he domestic
drilling industry, already stag
gered by the year-long ,glut in
crude oil supplies, may sutler
another jolt because of OPEC’s
failure to agree on oil pricing
and production policies./
Industry experts agree that
any worldwide plunge in the
price of crude oil that might fol
low the failure of OPEC mem
bers to agree would result in a
decline in drilling activity within
the United States.
agreement, many economists
and production company execu
tives said it was too early to get
an accurate idea of what will
happen to prices.
“But uncertainty has always
tended to stack rigs,” said Bates
Grinnell, economist for the Dal
las consulting firm of DeGolyer
& McNaughton.
After the Cieneva OPEC
meeting ended Monday with no
“If we were to see a price
decline, I would expect that
some of those marginal (domes
tic) wells would not be drilled.”
Dr. Edgar Barrett, director of
the McGuire Oil and Gas Insti
tute at Southern Methodist Uni
versity, said, “If the price of oil
hills, you have to believe that the
amount of drilling will dip below
what it has been. After all, drill
ing is done in expectation of
making money.”
But economists and analysts
from some of the big oil com
panies said OPEC nations prob
ably will come up with some sort
of working stategy, despite the
inconclusive end of the meeting
in Geneva.
Such petroleum-producing
states as Texas and Oklahoma
stand to lose if the price of oil
drops.
Sen. Rodger Randle; chair
man of the Oklahoma Senate
Appropriations Committee,
said: “OPEC's failure to reach a
new agreement ... increases the
likelihood that we will see the
beginning of a slide in world oil
prices. Since each dollar’s de
cline in the price of Oklahoma
oil costs the state’s general fund
more than $10 million, falling
oil prices certainly would
deepen Oklahoma’s strained re
venue problem.”
partment that the consensus was
that prices would settle at about
$27 a barrel in Texas. The price
before Monday’s OPEC de
velopment was $29, down from
a high of $31 several months
ago.
Dr. James E. Jonish, an eco
nomics professor at Texas Tech,
said he expects a short-term
drop in gasoline prices to follow
OPEC’s disunity.
discourage drilling in the same
period.”
At Phillips Petroleum in Bart
lesville, Okla., an official who
did not want to be identified said
In Texas, Lloyd Rolen of the
comptroller’s office said Exxon
told the revenue estimating de
“I wouldn’t want to forecast
the magnitude, but it will lower
employment in the drilling in
dustry,” he said. “If there is an
oil and gas glut, it would tend to
the OPEC squabbling probably
would force prices down by $2 to
$4 a barrel. This, he said, un
questionably would hurt domes
tic drilling.
Marginal production, which
includes stripper wells and ex
pensive enhanced recovery
programs, would feel the effects
first, he said.
It may be hard for some oil
men to digest, but the much-
despised windfall profit
be a factor in cushioniii|:
blow ofany dropincrude[
J im Weimer, a partner
Dallas Office of Price Hi
house, said the federal gtm
ment would absorb much
drop in revenue caused)
plunge in oil prices. Soo
“old oil” sold by a majorprtt
er is taxed at a 70 percetiti
'Lite rate for independettui
percent.
Thus, he said, falliiij
prices in some cases “migis
be that great a deterrent
companies drilling in prf
fields.
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Superinsulatio
in house cuts
heating costs
United Press International
INDIANAPOLIS — Bruce
Sklare paid only $ 146 to heat his
superinsulated, 2,400-square-
foot home last winter. He’s hop
ing to lower the cost even more
this year.
“Citizens Gas company offi
cials told me a house of this size
should have cost between $700
and $800 to heat,” the Indiana
polis builder said. “I used the
house as a guinea pig, and now I
know it works.”
In June 1981, Sklare decided
to see how heat-tight he could
build a normal house with
ordinary construction methods.
The house contains triple the
normal insulation. Building
costs were only 3 percent more
than a conventional house the
same size, he said.
“We just used common sense,
that’s all,” Sklare, 31, said.
“There’s nothing magical, no
thing mysterious about it all. I
haven’t gone to school to learn
about superinsulated homes.
“We simply said: ‘Let’s see
what is practical, what can be
done to make a home energy
efficient and yet look normal.’
And then we put all those ideas
together in this house.
“We designed this house to be
as heat efficient as possible. The
priorities were to keep heat in,
keep cold air out and maintain
air quality.”
Sklare paid $146 to heat his
three-bedroom home from
October 1981 through April.
The major difference in the
house is a double-thick exterior
wall with an insulation rating of
R-39 — double the norm for
central Indiana.
The ceiling insulation is a su-
perhigh R-60, the treated wood
foundation is rated R-22 and the
floor of the crawl space is R-18.
The only visible difference
from conventional houses is ex
tra-deep window sills because of
a wall thickness of eight inches
instead of the usual four.
Sklare said cold air in conven
tional homes finds its way in
through cracks, and heat
escapes that way, accounting for
30 to 50 percent of heating bills.
Much heat is lost tlin
windows, he said, soinste
single pane or evendoublt
ing, Sklare installed triplqi
windows. Instead of dra
drapes, during the evenit
snaps in light-weight imi
panels covered with
material.
Sklare also used such
methods as large window
ing south to collect the
sun, and believes in “usinj
passive solar techniques^
perinsulation in building.
The entire house wasi
ped with an air infiltratk
rier of a plastic materii
keeps out wind and wata matters
shops w
lets water vapor escape.
Sklare installed 22 ten; people’s
Mor
foundation and
the U
Americ:
attendei
the Hu
1978 as
Instituti
tional
center.
Gooi
importa
“If
times a <
buffer doctc
“Put
saying
ture sensors to monitortht
ciency of insulation in the
attic,
space.
The t rouble withasupen
lated house is that thereiw
be enough oxygen forpetp
breathe.
Sklare dealt with theproi
by burying two 8-inch
pipes” eight feet in the[
to bring outside airtotht
nace. One pipe provides®
combustion in the
chamber. The other feedi
the return air duct,
fresh air that is heatedb bedanc
reaching the rooms. will sav
He also avoided sucb
rials as particle board tha
erate formaldehyde and
air pollutants.
Sklare said the concept®
perinsulating is nearly
old, but builders only no*
taking time to institute
changes because buyersan
ally demanding these
rnents.
“The buyer tells the buili
want it like this because H
my heat bills are getting 1*!
and higher every year,'
that’s when change comet
said. “It’s up to the buyer
mand it.”
“I built this house so
years. I’ll be able topaym 1
bills,” he said,
that.”
‘It’s as simi
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