Geology Survey Points to Possible Greenland Oil

A new assessment of possible oil and gas reserves in northeastern Greenland suggests there might be the equivalent of about 31.4 billion barrels of fossil fuels in offshore areas, according to news from the U.S. Geological Survey (U.S.G.S.)

While northeastern Greenland has no proven fossil fuel reserves, the new assessment indicates the region might yet hold significant undiscovered resources, U.S.G.S. officials say.

"This is the first systematic and comprehensive analysis of the undiscovered petroleum resources of the Circum-Arctic in the public domain," said Mark Myers, director of the U.S.G.S. "Knowing the potential resources of the Arctic -- an area of tremendous resource potential, environmental sensitivity, technological risk and geological uncertainty -- is critical to our understanding of future energy supplies to the United States and the world."

An earlier assessment of northeastern Greenland, conducted by the U.S.G.S. in 2000, estimated the region possessed the equivalent of 47 billion barrels of oil. In addition to estimating less overall oil and gas, the new analysis indicates that the area might have more natural gas and natural gas liquids and less oil than previously thought.

If the new figures are proven accurate, northeastern Greenland would rank as the world's 19th largest oil and gas province, according to the U.S.G.S.

As of the end of 2003, global crude oil reserves were estimated at 1.148 trillion barrels, according to the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration (EIA). The EIA expects world consumption of petroleum and other liquid fuels to increase from 83 million barrels per day in 2004 to 118 million barrels per day by 2030. The U.S. is by far the largest consumer of fossil fuels -- more than 20 million barrels per day as of 2004 -- and Saudi Arabia is the largest producer, pumping out 9.8 million barrels per day in 2004, according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2004.