Critical national choice: new energy horizons. or horizontal disintegration. [Booklet]

Book · Thu Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1976

OSTI ID:7134086

Some members of Congress want to bar U.S. oil companies from developing non-petroleum energy sources. They have introduced bills that would make oil companies give up any ownership or interests they may have in other sources of energy. These sources include coal, oil shale, geothermal steam, uranium, and energy from the Sun. The name given to proposals of this kind is ''horizontal divestiture.'' Other proposals would dismember the present structure of U.S. oil companies, through what is called ''vertical divestiture.'' This means restricting individual oil companies to just one segment of the petroleum business--either exploration and production, or transportation, or refining/marketing. All of these proposals are being advanced at the very time the United States is becoming even more dependent on high-cost foreign oil. And more and more of the imported oil is coming from the Arab countries, the very ones that imposed the oil embargo against this nation in 1973-1974. The extent of U.S. rising dependence on imported oil is clear: in mid-February of 1976, the U.S. imported more crude oil than at any other time in history. The booklet first explains why various oil companies are searching for different forms of energy besides oil and natural gas. Second, it demonstrates that strong competition exists throughout the energy business today. Entry of oil companies into non-petroleum energy development has, in fact, increased--not reduced--competition.

• OSTI ID: 7134086
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
293000 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Policy
Legislation
& Regulation
294002* -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Petroleum
ACTINIDES
BITUMINOUS MATERIALS
CARBONACEOUS MATERIALS
COAL
ELEMENTS
ENERGY
ENERGY SOURCES
EXPLORATION
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
GEOTHERMAL ENERGY
INDUSTRY
LEGISLATION
MARKET
METALS
NORTH AMERICA
OIL SHALES
OPERATION
PETROLEUM INDUSTRY
PETROLEUM REFINERIES
PRODUCTION
REGULATIONS
RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES
SOLAR ENERGY
URANIUM
USA