OIL IN AMERICA

Wairarapa Times-Age, 28 April 1938, Page 11

OIL IN AMERICA

HOW MUCH IS UNDERGROUND. Conflicting reports continue to be made in regard to the reserves of petroleum oil yet underground in U.S.A. According to the most recent estimate of the American Petroleum Institute, that country’s oil reserves are computed to exceed 15,500,000,000 barrels (42 gallons'). This estimate takes into consideration only the proven oil areas of U.S.A., and is based upon present production methods. Another' estimate computed by the associate director of the U.S.A. Petroleum Conservation Department (Mr E. B. Swanson) places the position in a more gloomy light. His report, and it was recently cited by President Roosevelt as being “somewhat more alarming than I had previously believed,” states that the known drilled reserves in U.S.A, are estimated to be capable of supplying the demand only until the end of 1941, and to meet the expected demand during 20 years to come it would be necessary, in addition to production from known reserves, to discover 28,000,000,000 barrels of new oil. Such discoveries, he stated, would have to be made at a rate greatly exceeding those of the past seven years. Reverting to the latest estimate of the Petroleum Institute, viz, 15,500,000,000 barrels of drilled reserves in U.S.A., that figure, based on the current output of crude oil in America, is equivalent to about 13 years’ supply. In 1037 that country consumed approximately 1,168,000.000 barrels of petroleum products and related fuels. The petrol used alone accounted for 517.000,000 barrels. It is of interest to mention that last year Great Britain used 85 million barrels of petroleum and related fuels, including 43 million barrels of petrol. France consumed 50.9 million, Germany 43 million, Italy 20 million, Russia 158.2 million, Canada 43.5 million, Japan 34 million, Argentina 25.3 million, and Australia 13.85 million. All told, over 1919 million barrels of petroleum products were consumed by the world in 1937, a colossal output that is causing some experts to look with gloomy forebodings as to where the petroleum supplies for the next generation are to come from.