It's a sign of the times that at the annual convention of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists, held in Houston recently, there were panels and keynote speakers devoted to worries about finding enough oil and gas for the world-and seeking ways for the U.S. to wean itself from crude oil altogether. Clearly, the subject of world oil supply and the timing of peak oil production is troubling the world's geologists. From 1995 to 2004, the world produced about 250 billion barrels of oil equivalent (BOE), yet discoveries during that period found only 150 billion, according to data from IHS Energy. Despite the anxiety these data may cause, global oil production actually increased, thanks to reserve adjustments and the application of new technologies in giant fields that were already found by 1996, according to Sandy Rushworth, now senior geologist with Marathon Oil. She was with IHS when the data were compiled. "This is an exploration dilemma, but growth in giant fields will meet demand," she said. As new knowledge about existing fields is gained through production history, their reserves typically grow greater. Reserves added within existing fields from 1995 to 2004 climbed by 457 million BOE-three times the rate of discoveries made during the period. Most of those increases came from giant fields. For more on this, see the June issue of Oil and Gas Investor. For a subscription, call 713-260-6441.
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