WASHINGTON, June 17 (UPI) -- Drilling offshore, particularly in arctic regions offshore Alaska, won't do much to wean the United States off foreign oil, a U.S. House committee heard.
A House subcommittee on energy resources held an oversight hearing on reserves thought to be in arctic waters and how they could potentially impact U.S. leverage overseas. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said in early June that moving more domestic oil to the global market could "strengthen the strategic hand of the United States."
Michael LeVine, a senior counsel on the Pacific region for advocacy group Oceana, told the House committee that arctic waters alone weren't enough to protect the U.S. economy from overseas shocks.
"Offshore drilling in the United States, particularly in the Arctic Ocean, will not substantially affect the price consumers pay for gasoline," he said in his written testimony. "Nor will it make us significantly less dependent on foreign sources of oil."
Of all the companies vying for the right to drill in the arctic waters off the coast of Alaska, only Royal Dutch Shell has the mettle to deploy rigs to the region so far, he said. LeVine testified that, according to federal estimates, the Arctic Ocean holds around 23.6 billion barrels of oil, while the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries controls more than "1,200 billion barrels of proven reserves."
House leaders said the White House already dealt a "significant blow" to the state of Alaska when it decided to set aside more than 12 million acres as an off-limits wildlife refuge.
Representatives from oil services company Schlumberger told the House committee that operators in Alaska have a strong culture of safety. Opponents argue, however, that there are no viable ways to respond to an arctic oil spill of any significant magnitude.
Erik Milito, director of exploration and production for the American Petroleum Institute, said in a statement exploiting arctic reserves should be a national priority.
"Arctic oil and natural gas represent incredible potential for American energy security, jobs and revenue for the government," he said. "No other undeveloped energy basin in the country can match the amount of oil and natural gas we can produce in the Arctic."
