2007年VOA标准英语-High Prices, Demand Lead to New Oil Extraction

By Mil Arcega
Washington
25 May 2007
 

Technology and high gasoline prices are helping¹ to coax² hard-to-extract oil from California's oil fields.  Production at some of the state's older oil fields is expected to dry up in about 25 years, but Chevron³ says new ways to pump thick crude from the ground could more than double their life expectancy⁴. VOA's Mil Arcega reports.

Bakersfield's oil field

Oil fields outside Bakersfield, California, produce nearly 170 million barrels per year - about 80 percent of the state's oil supply.  Production at most of these wells has been declining for 25 years.  But continuing demand and increasingly high gasoline prices have producers looking for new ways to squeeze every drop.

Chevron petroleum⁵ engineer Paul Harness says the latest techniques use soundwaves to pinpoint⁶ hidden oil deposits. "The 3-D model tells us what we should expect to get from that well.  Our production information tells us what it's actually making.  If there's a large enough gap, we know exactly what well to work on."

But what they are finding several hundred meters below ground is heavy crude, so thick it takes steam to reduce its viscosity⁷.  Chevron engineer Jeff Hatlen says it would have been too expensive to pump the oil out just a few years ago.

"[By diverting the water] just outside of the oil, we can draw down the water and remove its ability to move into the oil column," explained Hatlen.

He says the technique could more than double the life expectancy of California's oil fields, some of which are expected to dry up in 25 years. "It's really about applying technology, benefiting from price environments to allow us to sustain development," he added.  "I suspect we're going to hit recoveries that I couldn't have imagined 5, 10 years ago."

Chevron says the same technology has been used at some of its overseas oilfields to boost production capacity as much as tenfold.   

1 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

2 coax   

v.哄诱，劝诱，用诱哄得到，诱取

参考例句：

• I had to coax the information out of him.我得用好话套出他掌握的情况。
• He tried to coax the secret from me.他试图哄骗我说出秘方。

3 chevron   

n.V形臂章；V形图案

参考例句：

• He wore shoulderstrap rank slides with sergeant's chevrons.他佩戴标示级别的肩章，上面有中士的V形标志。
• The chevron or arrow road sign indicates a sharp bend to the left or right.V形或箭头路标表示有向左或向右的急转弯。

4 expectancy   

n.期望，预期，（根据概率统计求得）预期数额

参考例句：

• Japanese people have a very high life expectancy.日本人的平均寿命非常长。
• The atomosphere of tense expectancy sobered everyone.这种期望的紧张气氛使每个人变得严肃起来。

5 petroleum   

n.原油，石油

参考例句：

• The Government of Iran advanced the price of petroleum last week.上星期伊朗政府提高了石油价格。
• The purpose of oil refinery is to refine crude petroleum.炼油厂的主要工作是提炼原油。

6 pinpoint   

vt.准确地确定；用针标出…的精确位置

参考例句：

• It is difficult to pinpoint when water problems of the modern age began.很难准确地指出，现代用水的问题是什么时候出现的。
• I could pinpoint his precise location on a map.我能在地图上指明他的准确位置。

7 viscosity   

n.粘度，粘性

参考例句：

• The viscosity shows a rather pronounced variation with temperature.温度对粘度的影响十分明显。
• The reciprocal of viscosity is known as fluidity.粘度的反意就是流动性。