Pickens Plan: U.S. Spent Over $25 Billion on Imported Oil in August

September 11, 2009 – Vol.14 No.25

Pickens Plan: U.S. Spent Over $25 Billion on Imported Oil in August.

In his ninth consecutive monthly update on the level of foreign oil imports-- on the same day the U.S. Department of Commerce announced the biggest increase to the trade deficit in 10 years, largely due to surging purchases of oil-- energy expert T. Boone Pickens said the U.S. spent more money importing oil in August than any previous month in 2009.

Pickens said that based on the latest figures from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA), the U.S. imported 60 percent of its oil, or 355 million barrels in August 2009, sending approximately $25 billion, or $564,201 per minute, overseas to foreign governments.

“As OPEC holds steady on its goal of sustaining $75 oil, the U.S. sent over $25 billion overseas to pay for it in August—more than any other month in 2009, so far,” said Pickens. “It’s a threat to our national security, and it’s not helping our economy recover. Oil accounts for over 65 percent of the U.S. trade deficit, which just had its biggest percentage increase in a decade. With unemployment up and hovering near double digits, there is no more important time to harness our natural resources, like natural gas, to replace foreign oil at the pump and keep jobs and dollars on American soil.”

Since January 2009, the U.S. has imported more than 2.9 billion barrels of oil. A study released in June by the Potential Gas Committee, a group of academics and industry specialists supported by the Colorado School of Mines, estimates that we have more than 2,000 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves, the only available source that could immediately replace foreign oil as a transportation fuel.

The Pickens Plan is a detailed solution for ending the United States’ growing dependence on foreign oil. The plan calls for expanding the use of domestic renewable resources, such as wind and solar, in power generation and using our abundant supplies of natural gas as a transportation fuel, replacing more than one-third of our imported oil. (9/11/09)

Links:

Pickens Plan
http://www.pickensplan.com

Disclaimer, Forward-Looking or Safe Harbor Statement on original press release: No