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<br />, Indiana Standard official
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<br />hints oil shale hitch
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<br />11l1' ,'i(e chainnan of the- ,"..m:! ()f du"€'ctors
<br />of Standard 011 or IndmJa hinted Tuesda\' lhat
<br />his companv and Gulf OIl Co, might Ol't corn.
<br />pIt-It' oil sh.ilf' tk\('I(\pml'nt plaffi on the- first
<br />ff'de-ral shalf' ka;,e unIt':,:, the\- l'Uuld get ,,~r-
<br />ances)hat the gOlwnm<'nt i\'Ouldn't~sab..,t<\ge
<br />thE'program.
<br />Robert C. Gunnl'5s. ~pe-ak>lli bdtlrl' tt~ Col(\.
<br />rado Interim LI-'!:!islatlH' C{lmmiUt'e Ull Oil
<br />Shale. Coal and 1\t.>lalrd :>lllIerals, ~aid. ":\0
<br />company or group 01 ('()lJlpdnil's is gOIng to
<br />make the multibIllion dollar inn'!>tm~nts re-
<br />quir(.d for full-!\('atr tX>H'lopment \\ithoul some
<br />assurances that future go\'ernment:~1 aclion
<br />will nut knork the props out from wlder the
<br />program:'
<br />Until thOSe assurallC1's are 3\'ailabll" he
<br />added. Standard and Gulf arc starting a $15
<br />million predt'vel(lpment pWJl'cl tl1.1.1 wit! take
<br />about two years and lOO~rsons.
<br />Gunness explained lhat thl> heavy inH'sl..
<br />mrnts. high operating cosls and long develop.
<br />ment time made am' venture inlo oil shale'
<br />production "e.\tremeiy ,ulnerable to signifi-
<br />cant prire fluctuations jncom~titi\'e fiJ("ls."
<br />. A governmental pri('f' rollback for crude oil
<br />('QuId wreck the feasibilih' of an\' oil shale
<br />project. .-
<br />PRI::SE:\T TI\II::L-\BLE
<br />Under the pr~'nt timt'table ('~tabli!>hed b}'
<br />Standard and Gulf. Gunocs~ said. the company
<br />will spend about Sl5 millIOn 1fI the nexl two
<br />years in prcdewlOpll1t'nl work at t~ site near
<br />Rifle.
<br />I Gunnf'ss told the- It>gbldlors 1Ii.1t Ihe two
<br />... companif's plan to beginsh.1le oil production at
<br />the site in 1900 WIth ttx-Ir !In.t 50 000 barrel a
<br />eLl)' plant operaling only al about 10 pe-r ("('nt
<br />c.ap.acit\'. Ttx- plant WllUld f.O inlo full produc.
<br />tlon by 1982 under ttv;> flnns- (mwlabk.
<br />If the first plant is succt'ssfu1. they plan 10
<br />exp.1nd plant cap.1cily to approximately 300,000
<br />barrels a day dunn!:, the 19ros, he said..
<br />However, I~ added, ddays to tl~ timetable
<br />could be pO~t'd by g<l\"ernment tlgencies. In
<br />addition to thE> inilial approvals rt'QuirNi from
<br />the Bureau of l;md. :\lanagem(-lIt and the U_S.
<br />Geological Surn'Y, he {'xplained, thf're are
<br />more than 200 S{'Jlarate fedt'ral, ~Iatc and local
<br />go\'ernmfnt ag.'ncies and prh'ate inteH':.t
<br />groups that will be watching the \\(,rk. .
<br />Thf' most important ronditkons \\hich could
<br />afle(1 the schedule, he addt-d, are limes for
<br />g<l\'f'rnmf'nt approvab. tl"w> pril"< of alternali\e
<br />fu('ls and go\"('rnmenlal polley to\\ard dt.\cl(lp-
<br />mt'ntofsynlhelicfut'ls.
<br />1'F.ln1.-\:\E:\T \\onl\ !:"Oft( E
<br />Assuming a 5O.1~.(J barrel a dt~' plant.lV' said,
<br />approximately .tflJ ~nlra~t ron~trurtillll (':::!-
<br />plvyl's would h: rt'Qulred In the area by l!.l...
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<br />nidI number would grow 10 ab.lut ~,OOlI in 1:r.8
<br />and 19i91o build I!Y> pl;ml,
<br />The pe-rm.lI\ellt \\urk for(',. for II}(' plant. in
<br />:loout 1980. would l~ SOl1lt: I.OOU per:i(lll~. he
<br />e:;timat('d.
<br />Gunness quoted from ('~Iim;,:;-,s by the C_S.
<br />Department of It", Intl-rlOr and s:mi tlut a :>0.-
<br />000 barrel a d:lY plant "f.uld r~quire a
<br />temporary p',pu!atlon 01 at..,ul 8.600 p.;"r~ms,
<br />induding COfl.."lfUctiun \\ork('r~. ~UN~l1ting oc-
<br />('upalions and tt"'lr lamilit':'i. -
<br />The pennarx'nt 1X'pulallf>n imTea<;s \\"uld tlo"
<br />about 6.200 residents.lte qu()I~'d"
<br />Gunncss saId that the t\\U oil ('ompanies plan-
<br />n<<I to work wilh local groups and gtJ\ernlllt"rds
<br />on community planning, but tht' ('olllpanies
<br />doll't plan to .'cngage in ('ommunity dcwlop-
<br />mcnt through constnlctlon of ooll'iing SUbdl\i-
<br />sions or anything else whieh would 11<l\'e tile
<br />aura of a company tOV.T1 as.""x-ialed with it."
<br />He said he realized thai there would be a
<br />hard<;hip for U~ smaller Western Slope lowns
<br />that will have 10 try and absorb massi\"{' expll>-
<br />siollS in population and providl' SdXlOh. roads,
<br />water, seWf'r s\'slems and (ltl~r rJ{-eOs bef{.re
<br />the tax money isa\'ailable to pa) for them.
<br />LEASE Bo:-.;rS ~IO."EY
<br />Gunness said txllh Gulf and Standard felt th.1t
<br />the 3i.5 per ("('nt share (If the redt-ral 1f."..;.e
<br />bonus money lhat went to the stale st~.lUld p.1.}'
<br />for the needed improwm.'nts.
<br />Gulf and Stam1rd did dona!I' some planning
<br />monf'Y to Rio B1anro County at the reqlles: of
<br />county oHicials so U....y could begin plannlllg
<br />while waiting fl1r federal planning funds, ~
<br />said.
<br />Gunnf'ss al!;O s.1.id. lhat the Colorado commit.
<br />tf'e should look at the S2.S per l't'nl :-;h.'\rl' of the'
<br />ff'deral bonus mol'lE'Y \\hich ROes to the frderat
<br />Reclamation fund ao; a possible SOIlT("(-' of funds
<br />fur the \\l1ite Riwr \'allf'Y, .....hich might ro\'e
<br />to supply the bulk (If the watl'r nft'ded for the
<br />shale oil d!'\-elopment plants.
<br />lie addl'd, '.lthink lher(' is gt'l1('ral agref'-
<br />ment that in a world of finite resour('('s, shale
<br />and other nOllC(lnwntwll31 fuels \\ill ultim,llelv
<br />ro\'e to come into play, if (llllr to supplelf1t'lit
<br />conwnti(lfl..1! (uels to bu\' tin~ f'n route to tile'
<br />more exotic pow('r sourres to which the l'k1.tion
<br />oofl('s 10 be able lotum intI... next ct'lllury."
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