Lawyers and Business Executives in the News™

What's Behind OPEC's Production Hike?

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      The InsiderExclusive   TV Show with Steve Murphy is maximizing its influence among 60 million viewers on AOL Television, iTunes, and CBS by investigating how the Saudis think about a lot more than just keeping current prices high. They have a huge chunk of the world's oil reserves and want to encourage their customers to keep up their oil habit for decades more. They also don't want to exacerbate the current problems with the world economy—or even to be seen as contributing to them. Indications are that the Saudis would have liked to signal an even higher output hike, but in the face of opposition from perennial hardliners such as the Venezuelans, they settled for what they could get a consensus on. What specifically spooked the Saudis was the recent flipping over of the oil futures curve into what is called 'backwardation,' which means that near-term futures prices are higher (in this case much higher) than at the back end several years away.

For additional information about this show, our guests and additional shows, please contact Steve Murphy @ 818 762 6800 x20 or steve@prlawinc.com

Independent Report Criticizes Safety at BP's Refineries

Wayne Fisher has been voted by his peers as one of “Texas’ Top 100 Super Lawyers” and recognized by the State Bar of Texas as a “Texas Trial Titan.” He has obtained recoveries in excess of $1,000,000 in hundreds of cases involving products liability, aviation, maritime, medical malpractice, truck, auto and train collisions. Wayne was also just selected for and interviewed on "America's Premier Laywers" (www.americaspremierlawyers.org) and The LawBusiness Insider www.lbishow.com, which is featured in Fortune Magazine and broadcast worldwide on American Airlines and Northwest Airlines. He has many opinions concerning this story from The Wall Street Journal (wsj.com) about how independent panel set up to review BP PLC's refinery operations in the U.S. said Tuesday it found "significant" problems at five refineries and said company goals, such as cost-cutting, often overrode safety concerns at its plants.
The 374-page report, commissioned in the wake of a deadly March 2005 blast at the company's Texas City refinery, found that although BP aspires to be a safe company, it hasn't provided effective process-safety leadership in making certain its management and U.S. refining workforce understand what is expected of them regarding process safety performance. Let's implement these changes immediately. You can reach Mr. Fisher at 713 400-4001, or email waynef@fisherboyd.com

As Threats to Oil Supply Grow, A General Says U.S. Isn't Ready

John Manly of Manly, McGuire & Stewart greatly appreciated this story in The Wall Street Journal (wsj.com) about how Gen. Charles Wald concluded that even a combination of guns and diplomacy wasn't enough to secure the global fuel supply. Some of his projects, including the Caspian Guard, stalled amid resistance and indifference abroad and back home. Today, back in Washington, he is pushing for a complete redefinition of energy security, one that urges the U.S. to consume less oil and consider the security implications of global warming such as the possible need to beef up disaster readiness. The general is right! You can listen to more of John Manly on "The Law Business Insider," at www.lbishow.com. You can also reach John directly at 949-252-9990, or email jmanly@manlymcguire.com

BUSH: $6 PER GALLON WILL CHANGE AMERICANS DRIVING HABITS

In Finland and Denmark, the respective houses of government realized a powerful truth: rather than convince people to change, let the market do it for them. Here in the United States, the Bush administration's aim is to accelerate the market, not take it in an entirely new direction. In an excellent article by John D. McKinnon in The Wall Street Journal (wsj.com), there is an overview about how Bush spoke by phone with the head of GM, Rick Wagoner, and DaimlerChrysler AG officials about expanding ethanol use in the U.S. Even Toyota Motor Corp., a leader in hybrids, said last month it might build ethanol-using cars for the U.S. market. Honda Motor Co., too, is considering the idea. This whole situation represents the true power and purpose of government: Rather than have the Congress directly subsidize these efforts, which woudn't even necessarily make a dent on our addiction to foreign oil, the White House used the bully pulpit to get private industry to more seriously pursue alternative sources of fuel. Though we are far from casting aside that very addiction, we should nonetheless applaud those companies that have, either through direct encouragement from the White House or their own initiative, accelerated the process whereby we may all one day be free of foreign oil.

What a Kink in the Pipeline Does at the Pump

John Manly of Manly, McGuire & Stewart understands the ripple effect high oil prices can have on the rest of the economy. Hence his interest in this story from TIME Magazine about how the price of oil jumped $2 a barrel on Monday, past its record $77 close, on word that British driller BP would shut down its field at Alaska's Prudhoe Bay because of corroded, leaky pipes. In the past, this news would have hardly been noticed, but increased demand, coupled with the surging economies of both China and India, makes this event decidedly more significant. And don't forget the American consumer's love of SUV's. Taken together, these phenomena create high oil prices. Welcome to the global economy: it's not as affordable as I had imagined. You can listen to more of John Manly on "The Law Business Insider," at www.lbishow.com. You can also reach John directly at 949-252-9990, or email jmanly@manlymcguire.com

Oil-and-Gas Empire

Jerome Ringler is powerful advocate on behalf of the public interest. He naturally identified with this column by Garry Kasparov about how Kasparov fears that Russia will turn into an oil-and-gas empire. "From struggling workers in Vladivostok to top-notch lawyers in Moscow, we are a people proud of our intellectual traditions. Russia is a country of great literature and scientific accomplishments. It should not be our destiny to become another Saudi Arabia or Venezuela, to quite literally fuel the achievements of other nations while we lose ground." We all have a vested interest in Russia's stability and democratic future. Let us heed Mr. Kasparov's advice. You can listen to more of Jerry Ringler on "The Law Business Insider," broadcast at www.lbishow.com. You can also reach Jerry directly at 213-473-1900, or email jringler@rkallp.com

$5 a gallon is a good thing - T. Boone Pickens

You read the headline of this post correctly. That's right: T. Boone Pickens, the famed corporate raider and oil executive, believes $5 for a gallon of gasoline is not necessarily a bad thing. Why? Because price will kill demand, thereby lessening our dependence on foreign oil. As a result, more alternative energy sources would power cars, buildings and other aspects of ordinary life. At least that's the logic behind a recent story in BusinessWeek (businessweek.com), which profiles Pickens and his iconoclastic approach to our current energy crisis. He recommends using coal in lieu of oil, while also emphasizing that we have a practical outlook in the options we endorse to fix this economic and political mess. Far from being a carcicature of a Texan fixated on oil, T. Boone Pickens is a learned and passionate advocate of transcending our addiction to oil. And what an addiction it is!

FOCUS ON ALTERNATIVE ENERGY RECOMMENDATIONS: A Message From Steve Murphy

I had the pleasure of interviewing Daniel Yergin, an expert about the energy industry and a winner of the Pulitzer Prize for his magesterial book about oil, a few years ago. I asked him a question then, which he refused to answer. So I am asking it again, based upon his commentary in the April 27th edition of The Wall Street Journal (wsj.com), where he writes about the nation's oil and gas reserves. Dan, why don't you use your influence with these major oil companies, your clients, to invest far more money in alternative energies other than oil? It's all nice and dandy to tell the world about "oil" accounting discrepancies, but let's get to the real heart of the matter. Will the oil companies ever start making alternative energies a main focus of their business, or is your objective in line with the oil companies? Is that objective to make as much money, as quickly as possible, and only invest a pittance in alternative energies, or even new refineries? And please save the politico mumbo jumbo about "environmental issues" and such. He who has the gold is king, and the oil companies are now the kings. With their kind of influence and this political climate for change, they could easily make it possible to do a whole lot more to make our country less dependent on oil. What say you, Mr. Yergin? Can you answer these questions now? You can listen to more of Steve Murphy on "Meet America's Best Lawyers in the News," broadcast on Clear Channel's KTLK at www.mablshow.com. You can also reach Steve directly at 818-754-6688 x20, or email steve@prlawinc.com