While territorial claims are and will likely be heated, what struck me is that the area is right near the Drake Passage, in the Weddell Sea (which is fundamental to the world’s ocean currents AFAIU).
I don’t know how oil drilling in the antarctic could affect the passage, but still, I’m not sure I would trust human oil hunger with a 10ft pole on that one.
Also interestingly, the discovery was made by Russia, which is a somewhat ominous clue about where the current “multi-polar” world and climate change are heading. Antarctica, being an actual continent that thrived with life up until only about 10-30 M yrs ago, is almost certainly full of resources.
Just what we don’t need.
ever get the feeling that devil’s blood really is the final “fuck you, mammals!” from the dinosaurs?
I’d actually be curious to know if melting ice caps makes oil drilling more or less hazardous in this case.
But 100% agreed on not trusting oil companies to be mindful when doing anything there. We may also be hearing some formal declaration from the US saying the penguins have WMDs and are anti freedom in the not so distant future.
US about to declare war on the Arctic and bring some freedom to…uh…the penguins?
I was about to correct you, but then thought, no, I wouldn’t put it past the US to invade the Arctic when oil is discovered in the Antarctic.
[Trump pulls out a sharpie and starts circling the wrong part of the map]
“I AM PLACING TARIFFS ON PENGUINS UNTIL THEY GIVE US THEIR OIL AND SHOW ME HOW TO DO ALL THE DANCE MOVES FROM HAPPY FEET!”
Followed by 65 year old Moms whose children haven’t spoken to in a decade making Facebook memes with a Minion with Trump’s toupee and 8 clones of the same exact frame of Pingu atop an Iceberg, next to a crop of the American Flag from Apollo 11, with an oil rig in the background.
Upper Text: Happy Feet Tariffs: The Final Frontier!
Bottom Text: Trump and Penguins Agree - LOVE America!
Gonna find a penguin wedding and drone strike it. Just for shits and giggles. (All penguins within 500ft of the impact are designated “Enemy Combatants” by default. (This totally isn’t a war crime))
That would be a war against the world and they would break their own agreement.
The reserves uncovered contain around 511 billion barrels worth of oil, equating to around 10 times the North Sea’s output over the last 50 years.
According to documents discussed in U.K. parliament last week, the discovery was made by Russian research ships in the Weddell Sea, which falls under the U.K.'s claim in Antarctic territory. That claim overlaps with those of Chile and Argentina.
So in the water, not the land.
Googling says 36.4 billion barrels per year as of 2018, so 14 years.
That kind of calc isn’t fair though because there’s a ton of protection everywhere else.
I’m pinning my hopes on crude oil prices being much lower after the 10-20 years it would take to sort out the territorial disputes and complete construction of rigs that could pump oil in large volume. Oil will still be very valuable in 10-20 years, but i would guess it’ll be much less valuable then, and hopefully the price will be low enough to make it not worth the massive outlay cost
