‘Build, baby, build’ should be Trump’s oil mantra

‘Drill, baby, drill!’ may achieve increased oil and gas production, but not as a result of increased drilling

Donald Trump’s unofficial campaign slogan of “drill, baby, drill”, expressing a desire to increase oil and gas drilling, will—at best—facilitate exploration activities that had previously been severely limited by environmental and bureaucratic restrictions. Exploration is only the first phase of activity in the oil and gas chain. If discoveries are made, the development phase must further investigate, quantify and indicate where and how production can proceed, and install the appropriate infrastructure. Only then can production actually start, and the entire cycle can take anywhere from 5–10 years—or more—before any new production is achieved. Thus, “drill, baby, drill” cannot quickly achiev