Encyclopedia of Opinion
Question
Is shale oil a sustainable business model?
Position3 of 3

Shale is a viable, sustainable business model given improvements in technology and prices

This position holds that shale oil is a viable, sustainable business model given advances in technology and prices. It argues that drillers' rapid learning has pushed extraction costs below the market price of oil, creating jobs and driving US production to record highs.

Supporting arguments · 2

  1. U.S. oil and natural gas production has skyrocketed
    Hydraulic fracturing is perhaps the most important energy discovery in the last half-century. However, do the costs of such an advancement outway the benefits?
  2. Shale drilling has created more jobs in the oil drilling industry
    The extraction of "shale" oil—known as "fracking"—has significantly increased the number of jobs available in the industry, and has been a boost to the economy.