Oil industry insider talks about BP corruption and greed

Oil industry insider talks about BP corruption and greed

By Delilah Jean Williams New Orleans : LA : USA | May 12, 2010 20
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Videos Images First video of Gulf oil leakPosted by: BorderExplorer Oiled bird from spillPosted by: DelilahStarlingIgor Golubenkov CC sharealike Gulf of Mexico oil slickPosted by: DelilahStarlingpublic domain Ken PricePosted by: DelilahStarlingPu blic domainSee All Images
Igor Golubenkov CC sharealikeIn an exclusive interview, Ken Price, a 14 year oil industry veteran, talked about his experience in the industry and his contempt for the failure of B P to cap the Deepwater Horizon spill and the environmental ramifications.

DJW: What back ground and experience do you have in the oil industry?

KP: I started out with a major oil company right after I earned my BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from Berkeley, Ca. and worked in the commercial marketing and engineering division for fourteen years. I spent a great deal of time around large stationary engines used in power generation and manufacturing.

DJW: Have you witnessed corruption first hand in the oil industry?

KP: One time, on a visit to New York, my group got to tour the main office (of oil corporation)and meet some of the higher ups, and it was during this visit that I heard them boast about the actual number and occurrences of oil shortage predictions in the United States. My memory went back to about 1972, the now infamous Arab Oil Embargo. Their memories went back to the early 1900's, with additional ones occurring about every ten years. They freely admitted that it was through the public illusion "of a finite amount of oil being present on the planet", like only a certain number of diamonds in South Africa that they could convince the public to pay a decent profit for it. Otherwise, it would be like charging for water.

Today, I believe we should get on with much more efficient and non polluting resources like crystal hydrogen, hydrogen from water, and a host of others, electric cars for example we could produce in weeks, that are by today's standards a thousand times better than petroleum.

DJW: You were open to being interviewed, because you said the Deepwater Horizon set off a “primeval planetary defense system” in you. Could you elaborate on that feeling?

KP: The arrogance that I see displayed here by the oil companies, the fact that they are willing to take chances with our ocean, just seems out of line with any fellow human beings who plan on living into the future. How did they ever decide for themselves to take such chances? And for what? There are so many other places where they have already discovered oil and are simply not using it. Drilling
beneath the seas, especially where it is so deep is another dumb idea, just like requiring all gas stations to put their tanks underground so now we can't see the leaks into the soil. So, let's just say that there are some unbelievably stupid things being allowed to happen.


DJW: You said the oil industry is very corrupt and you have not fought against it due to the feeling of being powerless. What made you decide to speak up now?

KP: I said the oil industry is as corrupt as the statement "petroleum is a non-renewable energy source". Everyone would agree that all plant and animal life comes from a combination of elements on earth in conjunction with sunshine as the source of energy.

DJW: Are you saying the best kept secret by the oil industry is that oil can be synthesized and it can be a “renewable source”?

KP: Yes, we can make oil ourselves using algae and sunlight. Keep in mind, the most efficient solar collector is the plant. Every plant on this planet is thus a very efficient solar collector. We just simply need to embrace the concept. One other note I want to add is the horrendous volumes of oil it takes to provide the energy needs of the planet. We spend countless dollars on trucks, tanks, pipelines, oil tankers, ports, refineries, etc. Isn't it time to take a look at a more efficient form of energy, one that is more compact or dense so-to-speak? Can a 500 hp car run on a cup of hydrogen crystals for a year? It is possible.

DJW: Lamar McKay, head of BP testified before the Senate on Tuesday and he said, “no amount of resources will be spared to clean up the oil spill and mitigate the damages”. Do you believe him?

KP: Anyone who would trust an oil company executive or spokesman today could probably be declared legally insane. I mean think about it just one moment and ask yourself when have they ever told us the truth? They always under-report the size of a spill and the danger to animals and workers. In the case of the Exxon Valdez it has been 20 years and only 1/10 of the claims have been handled. Less than 4% of the oil was recovered. Ask anyone associated with fishing in Prince William Sound and they will tell you that the mess was never cleaned up.

DJW: BP representatives have repeatedly said, “we will pay all ˜legitimate claims”. Do you think the repeated use of the “legitimate” forecasts that their attorneys will come up with evasive definitions of “legitimate”?

KP: This well is leaking upwards of 1.2 million gallons a day; these are BP's own figures. They acknowledge that if the valve breaks that it could be upwards of five million gallons a day. So the idea that they will cover all legitimate claims is a physical impossibility.

DJW: Environmentalists are calling for Interior Secretary Ken Salazar’s resignation, because he didn’t reform the Mineral Management Service. If he had done so, safety regulations would have been reinstated to the level with the rest of the world and the explosion could have been avoided. Is that a fair assessment?

KP: It is a very partial assessment. Someone high in the Bush Administration approved the rig knowing that it was not going to have an acoustic blowout preventer. Then there's the question of who approved a floating type of platform in the first place, one that relies on diesel powered thruster engines in conjunction with a GPS positioning system to "hold" it in one place above the well. Most people were taken unawares that such a thing had ever been approved. Most believe that this platform was anchored to the bottom when it was actually held in place by a non-failsafe system. This is an idea that should never have gotten by anyone who had ever experienced a hurricane at sea.

DJW: Do you have any other examples of corruption and greed by oil companies?

KP: I'll give you another example. The plastic bag, a new "invention" brought to us via the petrochemical industry which replaced biodegradable paper. The plastic bag is not biodegradable but yet they are able to market it as a "disposable". How they get away with this gives you some indication of the lobbying power this conglomerate has. The fact that the act of converting paper to plastic requires an increase in petroleum production clearly contradicts their statements that they are trying to find ways to conserve energy and reduce oil dependence. Similar conversions have occurred with packaging, furniture, home building materials, clothing and a zillion manufactured items that are now (poor quality) junk by yesterday’s standards.

Ken Price considers himself to be a kind of “planetary watchdog” and the world could use many more just like him.
***Delilah Jean Williams 2010