BROADCASTS.com

We welcome Louisiana-based oil entrepreneurs Charlie Goodson, CEO of Petroquest, and Mark Miller, CEO of Merlin Oil &Gas, to discuss the current state of the energy industry, as well as how the war in Ukraine has affected the prices of fuel for people worldwide.



Both are active operators in the industry with over 40 years of experience and have served on the board of the Louisiana Oil and Gas Association for years as well as being spokespersons for the industry on the national level. They speak of the challenges that face operators, both big and small, as they determine the best way to invest millions of dollars that may take years to recoup.



"We're victims of our own success, as our friend Paul Hilliard of Badger Oil Corporation likes to say. We've been so good at what we do in this business that politically, we're being punished in Washington, who look at oil and gas men and women as people of immense wealth. That's not the case."



Investments in new drilling operations are not made lightly, as they can take four or more years to come to fruition if made onshore, and five, ten, and up to fifteen years if situated in the deepwater Gulf. And to raise money in today's climate, oil and gas entrepreneurs rely upon high-net-worth individuals to invest in their ventures; Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) criteria are becoming an increasing megatrend causing investment funds to steer away from funding traditional drilling ventures in lieu of renewable energy projects.




"There are a lot of reserves left but finding people willing to put up the capital and ride through the regulations put upon us is very difficult. If an oil company drills a well today, it will be produced at prices two to five years from now and no one knows what that will be. "




With political winds shifting rapidly, seasoned professionals must navigate the landscape that determines their ability to stay afloat financially. And these two men's companies are among the few remaining active in Louisiana after we lost so many oil and gas companies following the 2015 collapse in energy prices, the devastation of the COVID pandemic causing oil to trade below $0 briefly in 2020, and the relocation of many companies to others states in the wake of Louisiana legacy lawsuits.



A brief history of how energy sources have evolved seems in order so that we can understand where we are today and how to bridge the gap to total reliance upon renewable energies. In the mid-1800s, coal was the #1 source of fuel in the Industrial Revolution. In 1865, oil was discovered and unleashed untold potential in manufacturing and transportation capabilities. And interestingly, natural gas had been used for centuries, including by Native Americans in the U. S. (and back to 500 B. C. by the Chinese who used bamboo "pipelines" to transport gas that had seeped to the surface to boil water), but only became a viable widespread source of energy for home heating and cooking, and commercial manufacturing and processing plants, once pipelines began to be built in the 20th Century. Nuclear energy was expected to be the bridge fuel from hydrocarbons but the trifecta of the Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, and Fukushima disasters put the kibosh on that.



While many environmentalists push for a quick jump into total reliance on renewable energies such as wind and solar along with a transition to electric vehicles, both guests affirmed that it will take 50 to 100 years to accomplish a total transition away from fossil fuels. Mark noted that he has a 20-year old petroleum land intern who is expecting the oil and gas energy business to be her career for the next fifty years. And with everyone desiring to find a sustainable way to move from hydrocarbons to renewable energy,