Your views

Dear Sir,
As the Indians used to say in the Westerns of my childhood “White Man speak with Forked Tongue”. So do our politicians. My business card claims I’m a Petroleum Economist so here goes.
Firstly petroleum. In Friday’s Daily B. Sr. Soria (Minister of Tourism, Industry and Energy) states that if prospecting for oil and gas poses any risk to the environment it will not be allowed to go ahead. Let me tell him right now to save the expense of the environmental impact study that all extractive industries cause damage.
Never mind producing off shore oil and gas from giant platforms even prospecting will cause some. This is not the first time this information (not an opinion) has appeared in Spain’s only English Daily so I assume our Minister of Tourism doesn’t read the Bulletin.
Secondly economics. While it is true as he says that Spain pays millions of euros importing fuel it is not true that with its own deposits vehicle drivers would obtain cheaper petrol. The UK had its own monstrous supplies but the price there is 25 cents/l more than Spain with barely a drop!
It is all down to government taxes. Petrol is itself unbelievably cheap. Saudi Arabia doesn’t even charge 25 cents/litre but only 13 cents and still makes a profit. Over 90% of our 1.38€/l is government tax. The price of Saudi crude may be $100 per barrel but the actual cost is under $3 – the rest is, again, tax this time applied by the producing country.
The crude is transported and refined for a couple of cents before adding another 80 cents government take before arriving in our tank. If Spain discovers major fields the whole country will benefit terrifically but not the motorist. Petrol and cigarettes are cash cows which no politician will give up even if they say so in the run up to elections.