The environmental group Oceana believes that Scottish Oil Company Cairn Energy wants to transform the Mediterranean into a new and massive oil field (Daily Bulletin 15/12/11).
If Cairn succeeds and finds oil in the 4000 kms from Barcelona to Beirut under risk as suggested by Oceana then on the contrary to causing untold damage to the sea bed and bringing no economic benefits, the production would be barely visible and cause little or no damage if engineered correctly.
On the size of the oil fields envisaged by Oceana oil output would overcome ALL Spain's economic woes for decades.
Not only Spain's grief would end but also Italy's and impoverished Greece. The massive inflow of oil wealth into Syria and the Lebanon would alleviate their chronic youth unemployment and perhaps solve the Mid-East conflict in neighbouring Palestine.
Unfortunately none of this is likely to happen. Many oil fields have been found between Ibiza and the mainland but have been largely uneconomic.
Cairn Energy is a small oil company.
Producing 33'000 barrels per day may seem a lot (and if you were a Texan and owned it, it would be) but it represents only half of Spain's daily needs.
When it comes to offshore exploration and production Oceana and some of the incoming Government Officials are (forgive me) out of their depth.
Cairn have little chance of educating Oceana judging by their rants over the prospecting first devouring the sea bed, then destroying the Mediterranean before finally damaging the global economy.
They may have more success with the Government if they find some clandestine way of reviving the bribery culture which has typified much of our local politics for so long.
Mike Lillico
Playa de Palma
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