December 19, 2015 – Houston Chronicle
End to export ban brings rare cheer to the oil patch
Trade: Policy from 1970s is lifted, but change may not be felt quickly
By: Robert Grattan
Oil producers allowed themselves a small celebration near the end of a depressing year on Friday as Congress and President Barack Obama approved legislation lifting a four-decade ban on exporting U.S. crude.
Ending the export ban was part of a sweeping $1.1 trillion spending bill that cleared both houses of Congress Friday. Obama signed it into law a few hours later.
Although the ban disappeared immediately, its demise isn’t likely to have effect until sometime next year at the earliest.
“This is a light at the end of the tunnel,” said Ryan Lance, CEO of Houston’s ConocoPhillips and one of the highest-profile industry advocates for lifting the ban.
“We’ll be able to get into the global market, we’ll be able to get more cash, and that cash will flow back into the U.S.,” Lance said in an interview with the Chronicle. “It’s going to mean more jobs in Texas, more jobs in Houston.”
The region already has a large infrastructure for moving oil and gas, and the logistics business is likely to grow further when international destinations are added as well, said Rusty Braziel, the president of energy consulting group RBN Energy.
“Houston’s business will expand,” he said. “The two competing areas you’ll see for this are Houston and Corpus Christi.”
