Dropping gas prices

[sidewaysinthird]

rms is exactly right about the profits for some of the larger oil companies. It takes a huge amount of sales to reach those profits.

I work in an industry that sells a fair percentage of our products to oil related customers through a distribution network. What I keep hearing is they keep cutting back on manpower and contracting out more of the field service work required to keep wells up and running. Its as though the production companies, pipeline companies, and exploration companies are looking down the road to something else. Major companies in the oil and gas industry are suggesting that prices will run in this direction at least until the end of 2009. So expect things to get worse before they get better.

As for diesel fuel costs it has already reached over $4 per gal in many states, mostly due to what the oil companies are calling demand and the newish 15ppm sulfur requirement for all diesel engines 2007/8 (depending on your vehicle choice) and up. My company vehicle is a F550 that weighs 14,000 and gets 10 mpg, so this $4 a gal crap is killing me. Another hurdle is coming in 2010 for diesels emissions, then again in 2020. The common remark by some engine manufactures now is in cities like Houston and L.A. the air coming out of the exhaust is just as clean as the air in general, by 2010 they will be cleaner than the air they took in. Wonder what a gallon of fuel will cost by then?

I'm not suggesting we stop burning fossil fuel today and figure out what to do later but if the present oil companies want to remain the energy suppliers in the future they had better spend some of that cash to find the next major fuel for common use. We had better start talking to a few people or the costs of converting a cobra to an electric or hybrid will be the top subject on the forum in years to come.

Just my humble thoughs....