Few people know who Lyne Barret is.
Fewer know he is responsible for one of the most profitable investments in the U.S. energy complex.
Barret had a crazy notion that there was a good deal of oil lying beneath Texas soil.
Unfortunately, his timing wasn’t nearly as good as his instinct, as his first drilling venture was interrupted by the Civil War…
Just eight months after Lee surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse four years later, Barret helped create Melrose Petroleum Oil Company and resumed his search for crude oil.
The state’s first producing oil well was drilled and completed during the following year at the aptly named location of Oil Springs — 35 years before drilling at Spindletop began in 1901.
Although Barret’s well wouldn’t cause much celebration today, because it only flowed at a rate of ten barrels per day, the oil discovery was a sign of things to come.
Moreover, what started at Oil Springs quickly spread across the entire state. You’ve heard of the more famous of these oil and gas plays: the East Texas Oil Field, or perhaps the well-known fields in West Texas.
Today you can stand in the middle of the state and point to an oil or gas boom in practically any direction.
To say the United States is in the early stages of an oil revival would be an understatement, because the situation today is a whole different animal…
It’s no longer about finding the resource, but rather extracting it efficiently.
Take the Lucas gusher at Spindletop as an example…
Companies nowadays would be absolutely mortified if a well started spewing crude oil into the air at a rate of 100,000 barrels per day. When you consider that a barrel of oil is going for about $107 this morning, that’s over ten million dollars a day!
As you know, it’s a much different story when it comes to the shale boom. Geologists have known for a long time that there was a tremendous amount of oil and gas resources held in the shale plays in the lower 48 states… which is why nobody was surprised when the USGS’ reassessment revealed more than 7.4 billion barrels of undiscovered oil was lying in wait in the Bakken/Three Forks Formation in North Dakota.
Still, no matter how optimistic we are about the 151 drilling rigs running full steam in the Williston Basin, the United States isn’t without its secrets. Trust me, the U.S. has been holding on to this one for far too long…
Lyne Barret’s efforts kick-started an industry that pumps out 2.5 million barrels of oil every day.
The more oil the U.S. can churn out domestically, the better off we all are, especially given the current volatile state of affairs.
Part of Your World
I can’t help but ask everyone I talk to about the energy markets, “How are you NOT bullish on oil yet?”
We’ve been aware for a long time of just how serious the United States’ crude addiction has grown. Americans are sucking up more than 19 million barrels of oil and petroleum products on a daily basis.
But only now are people realizing that the U.S. isn’t alone in its crude obsession:
Just last week, the Energy Information Administration reported that the world’s demand for oil and petroleum products broke into record territory — again. (Keep in mind global consumption topped 88.9 million barrels per day last year.)
Not surprisingly, the bulk of this growth is from Asia, which passed North America as the largest oil consumer on the planet. Then again, that’s a title I would be happy to hand over.
The EIA believes China will surpass the U.S. as the largest net oil importer as early as October.
You read that right: As soon as next month, the Chinese could be importing more oil than we are.
It’s too bad China hasn’t had the same kind of success as we have when it comes to developing tight oil resources, which are responsible for significantly boosting U.S. production.
Until next time,
Keith Kohl
Check us out on YouTube!A true insider in the technology and energy markets, Keith’s research has helped everyday investors capitalize from the rapid adoption of new technology trends and energy transitions. Keith connects with hundreds of thousands of readers as the Managing Editor of Energy & Capital, as well as the investment director of Angel Publishing’s Energy Investor and Technology and Opportunity.
For nearly two decades, Keith has been providing in-depth coverage of the hottest investment trends before they go mainstream — from the shale oil and gas boom in the United States to the red-hot EV revolution currently underway. Keith and his readers have banked hundreds of winning trades on the 5G rollout and on key advancements in robotics and AI technology.
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