Arctic may hold twice the oil previously found there

(CNN) -- Continental shelves beneath the retreating polar ice caps of the Arctic may hold almost double the amount of oil previously found in the region, scientists

A team of scientists at the USGS collaborated with international researchers to conduct the first-ever comprehensive assessment of undiscovered oil and gas reserves within the Arctic Circle.

"We tried to put some boundaries on the range of possibilities and resources available in the Arctic," said geologist Donald Gautier, lead author of the survey, which is published this week in the journal Science.

Using geological analysis and probability modeling, researchers mapped out sedimentary rock deposits to estimate the amount of undiscovered oil and gas beneath undersea continental shelves.

This survey, the first of its kind*, could help oil and gas companies locate new troves of fossil fuels.

[I guarantee there's more than double the amount 'previously found': a) evidently this is the only comprehensive survey that's ever done, and b) They're only talking about 'conventional' reserves, our technology is way past that now, and c) We always find more.

Again: the history of oil use has been one of constantly expanding excess reserves discovered above and beyond consumption. The claim of 'peak oil' is a canard completely contrary to all empirical facts. Despite our every increasing appetite for oil & gas are discovery of new reserves - when we bother to look - has consistently outstripped demand and resulted in an ever expanding surplus of reserves.

FLASHBACK > Abundant energy will power future growth

Bottom line for the world: an incredible 36% increase in oil reserves [excess] during the two decades that saw the greatest globalization-spurred oil consumption in the history of mankind. And that doesn't include the 152 billion barrels in proven oil reserves obtainable from Canada's tar sands. Is there any reason to doubt that the next two decades won't build on the steady growth of the last two?

But this is still not the end of it. Unconventional oil reserves are now in play. In 2005, the Rand Corporation estimated that the oil shale in America's Green River Formation, which covers portions of Colorado, Utah and Wyoming, contains as much as 1.1 trillion barrels of oil recoverable, an amount comparable to the reserves of four Saudi Arabias.

Then there's Canada's tar sands, with its even greater potential--estimates of the total reserves that may be available top two trillion barrels, or eight Saudi Arabias.

This is still not the end to it. Most of the oil we know about lies in the well traveled portions of the globe. But most of the world remains unexplored...

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