Fracking has given America gas prices that are far cheaper than in Europe, created hundreds of thousands if not millions of jobs, and has almost doubled crude production over the last seven years.
But the government is expected to allow prices to rise soon to curb its widening budget deficit.In this section Double, double, oil and trouble Crude measures Reprints Related items Energy: Double, double, oil and troubleMay 29th 2008In theory, rising crude-oil prices should reduce global demand.
In July, the Obama administration and other world powers announced an end to sanctions against Iran as part of a deal to curb the country's nuclear capabilities, which led Tehran to later say it will soon double its crude oil exports.
Iran is already vowing to double its crude oil exports after sanctions are lifted.
Since 2000, the number of exploratory and developmental wells has nearly doubled, while crude production has continued to slip.
Easing of Oil Losses The doubling of crude prices since last year isn't the only thing giving a healthy glow to earnings of big oil companies.
Executives at Conoco, a subsidiary of Du Pont, said they believed the company was the first American oil producer to place an order for a double-hull crude-oil tanker.
Fracking and other unconventional techniques have doubled North American natural gas reserves to three quadrillion cubic feet — the rough equivalent of 500 billion barrels of oil, or almost double Saudi Arabia's crude inventory.
