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Articles by Matthew R. Simmons
Chairman and CEO
Simmons & Company International
Videos and Interviews
World
Energy Television Presents: Energy Crisis, A Discussion with
Matt Simmons
Amidst skyrocketing oil prices, considerable financial activity
in the oil market, and increased gas prices, producing and consuming
nations alike are concerned about efficiency and supply. World
Energy recently spent an afternoon with Matthew Simmons, president
of the energy investment firm Simmons & Company International
and author of Twilight in the Desert: The Coming Saudi Oil Shock
and the World Economy, to hear his perspective on oil supplies,
pump prices, distributed generation and a return to post–World
War II practices. |
From the Pages of World Energy Monthly Review:
From the Pages of World
Energy Magazine:
Another
Nail in the Coffin of the Case Against Peak Oil
As world demand for petroleum continues to grow, says the author, one glaring
fact remains: Norway, the United Kingdom, the United States and Mexico – as
well as Saudi Arabia – have all passed the peak-oil stage. In the face
of peak-oil doubters, erratic oil stock data and confused reserves reporting,
nations must face the facts of decline and realize that there is no single solution
for what promises to be an ongoing issue. |
Is the World Supply
of Oil and Gas Peaking?
Peak oil remains a debated topic. But
to the author, the question is not if, but when the peak will
affect energy markets. Declaring a wake-up call for oil and gas
producers, he calls for a mandate to provide reliable production
data to accurately predict field-by-field decline rates. |
A
New Plan: Stop Digging, Start Climbing
Bad data and even worse analysis has dug the energy sector into a hole, states
the author. The way out begins with the development of a globally mandated, field-by-field
production report and continues with a new focus on research and development. |
Twilight
in the Desert
The author gives a preview of his new book, Twilight in the Desert,
which he describes as a wake-up call to the urgency and importance of understanding
the oil supply in Saudi Arabia and beyond. Among other initiatives, he advocates
a Sputnik-like revolution dedicated to creating new energy forms. |
Global
Crude Supply: Is the Oil Peak Near?
Last February, senior figures in Saudi Arabia's energy administration appeared
with the author before a group of industry experts to debate Saudi Arabia's petroleum
policies. At issue was whether Saudi Arabia can continue as the world's largest
oil producer, and for how long. The country's Aramco executives assured the world
that there is no impending crude oil shortage. The author was not entirely convinced.
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The
Dawning of a New Oil and Gas Era: Is a Sea Change Ahead?
Although prices for oil and gas remain higher than "normal," the surge
of supply that's usually expected at these price levels has not occurred. Noted
industry analyst Matt Simmons takes a different look at the supply-demand equation
and suggests we may be facing a new era of more expensive or, as he prefers to
express it, more realistic energy prices. |
How
Costly Is "Expensive Oil"?
To the economists who insist that cheap oil and gas are essential for economic
growth, the author has a contrary opinion. In fact, he argues, low energy prices
may discourage sufficient investment to replenish our supplies, so prices of
$30 oil and $5 gas should not be considered excessive.
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Fixing
Corrupt Investment Research: It?s Not That Hard
Major reform is urgently needed on how investment banking equity research is
conducted and communicated. The system is broken and badly in need of a fix.
The author asserts that with cooperation from all parties involved, good investment
research can return to its place as an important part of the investment process,
and explains how the reform can best be completed.
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The
Case for a Coming Gas Shortage
As the world's largest energy consumer, America is fortunate to be virtually
self-sufficient in each key energy source, with the exception of oil. Yet natural
gas, which is assuming greater importance, could soon suffer a 10 percent drop
in supplies, causing an energy crisis. The author explains his scenario in detail.
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Finding
the IEA's "Missing Barrels"
While the International Energy Agency has blamed discrepancies in its tally of
world oil production on "missing barrels," the author takes the IEA
to task and claims the theory is unworkable. Based on his analysis, there is
no place for millions of barrels of crude to be "hiding." The author
says if the IEA won't renounce its missing barrel theory, the oil and gas industry
should form a task force to set the matter straight.
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Is
the Petroleum Pricing System Out of Control?
Today's crude oil prices are the lowest in a decade and the impact is beginning
to hurt one industry participant after another. Yet revisions to estimates of
both supply and demand paint a different picture than that suggested by the low
oil prices. In fact, real data trickling in shows that through the end of 1997,
oil demand was still rising, in spite of the mild winter and Asia's troubles.
The author suggests that futures market trading, rather than the supply-demand
function, is setting prices, and this situation needs to be corrected. |
From the Pages of Energy Houston Magazine:
The
Decline and Fall of Corporate Advice
Many of the corporate meltdowns now making headlines cannot be
explained simply by poor self-governance. Rather, they grow from
a systematic, potentially devastating failure of the professional
service industry that has historically provided excellent advice
to corporate America. Asserting that the corporate advisory system
is badly in need of meaningful reform, the author explains why
the crisis has reached its current state and explores what can
be done about it. |
The
Earth in Balance: Has Energy Capacity Maxed Out?
Ultra-low energy prices over the past few decades have proved to
be powerfully strong in fueling the remarkable economic growth
enjoyed by so many parts of the world for so long. But, as the
author notes, that gain has been paid for by the loss of the world's
energy infrastructure and excess capacity. He asserts that we are
in an energy crisis that won't soon be ended. |
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