VOA常速英语2014--油价下跌影响美国石油开采

 

Falling Gas Prices Impact US Oil Extraction 油价下跌影响美国石油开采

CHICAGO— 

With the price of oil now less than $80 a barrel, motorists throughout the United States are benefiting from gas prices below $3 a gallon. However, the decreasing price of gas has a downside for the hydraulic¹ fracturing industry in the United States.

随着油价目前下跌至每桶80美元以下，美国各地的驾车人从中受益。现在汽油零售均价也跌到每加仑（约4升）3美元以下。不过，下跌的汽油零售价对页岩油开采业来说却不是利好消息。

North Dakota’s economy is on fire, thanks to developments in technology that allow oil extraction from shale² formations deep below the surface.

现在美国北达科他州的经济蒸蒸日上，这得感谢地下页岩油开采技术的发展。

The process to extract that oil, known as hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” is the source of the economic boom for states on top of these deposits.

这种开采页岩油的流程被称作“水力压裂”，它为富含页岩油资源的各州带来滚滚财源。

Now, that prosperity is trickling³ down to the rest of the country.

现在，财富正缓缓流向全美国。

“Fracking is the miracle that has brought down gasoline prices,” said Phil Flynn, a senior market analyst⁴ with the PRICE Futures⁵ Group. Flynn said the rise in the number of wells, and developing and expanding the system to refine and transport shale oil, are game changers for U.S. energy independence.

“水力压裂是个奇迹，压低了汽油价格。” 菲尔?弗林（Phil Flynn）说。弗林是普赖斯期货集团（Price Futures Group）的高级市场分析员。他表示油井的增多、提炼和运输页岩油的体系的发展和扩大，对美国能源独立来说是个“转折点”。

“The quality of the oil produces more gasoline than your traditional barrel of oil, and refiners in the U.S. are rising to the occasion to take advantage of this,” said Flynn.

他说： “这种油的品质可以比传统的一桶油要产出更多的汽油。美国的炼油商也开始利用这一优势。”

Austan Goolsbee, a Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business, said that while production of oil and natural gas is dramatically higher in the United States, there is a downside.

芝加哥大学布斯商学院的经济学教授奥斯坦?古尔斯比（Austan Goolsbee）说，虽然美国石油和天然气产量提高了，但这也有不好的一面。

“There is one issue -- the cost of production in North America tends to be higher than in the cheapest places like Saudi Arabia,” said Goolsbee.

他说：“有这么一个问题。北美石油生产成本一般要高于沙特阿拉伯等这些成本最低的地方。”

And Saudi Arabia knows this, which is why -- according to Flynn -- OPEC, or the Organization of the Petroleum⁶ Exporting Countries, of which Saudi Arabia is a leading member, has so far declined to curb⁷ production to maintain high market share.

而且，沙特阿拉伯心知肚明。菲尔?弗林说，因此，沙特是重要成员的“欧佩克”（OPEC），也就是“石油输出国组织” (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) 一直拒绝限产，以维持高市场份额。

“They’re trying to put the shale gas revolution on hold. They’re trying to flood the market with oil and drive prices even lower in the hopes the frackers will stop fracking,” said Flynn.

弗林说：“他们试图阻遏‘页岩气革命’。他们想要石油充斥市场，把油价压到更低，希望水力压裂开采商罢手不干。”

“On average, I would say that, once you start getting below a sustained $75 a barrel for oil, there would be a lot of domestic producers in the U.S. who say we can’t live at that sustained price.  If the price went to $65 a barrel, and stayed there for several years, a lot of guys would go out of business,” explained Goolsbee.

古尔斯比说：“一般来说，我认为，一旦油价开始跌到每桶75美元的持续价格以下，美国国内许多生产商会决定，他们不可能在这种持续低价的情况下继续生产。如果油价到了65美元/桶并且这样持续多年，许多人会因此停产。”

Goolsbee said there are several other factors contributing to lower gas prices, including the increase in the number of fuel-efficient vehicles on the road and less demand from major consumers.

古尔斯比说，还有其他因素导致了油价的下跌，包括街头上节能汽车的增多以及主要消费群体的需求减少。

“Some of the biggest users of energy, like China, have slowed down. Their growth rate has slowed down pretty substantially, so there has been less demand,” he said.

他说：“一些主要的能源消费国，例如中国开始减速发展。他们的增长速度持续放缓，因此对能源的需求有所减少。”

Which is part of the reason Flynn thinks lower gas prices are here to stay.

普赖斯期货集团的菲尔?弗林认为，这是较低油价还会持续一段时间的部分原因。

“The combination of more fuel efficiency, more oil production, more refining capacity means lower gas prices for a long time to come,” said Flynn.

弗林说：“更高的燃料效率，更多的石油产量，更多的炼油产能。这些因素意味着较低的油价将会持续相当长的时间。”

The American Automobile⁸ Association, or AAA, pegs⁹ the current average cost of gasoline in the U.S. at $2.85 a gallon - welcome news to motorists gearing up for long drives during the Thanksgiving holiday.

美国汽车协会（AAA）说，当前美国汽油零售价大约为2.85美元一加仑，这对于感恩节假期要长途旅行的驾车人来说是个好消息。

1 hydraulic   

adj.水力的；水压的，液压的；水力学的

参考例句：

• The boat has no fewer than five hydraulic pumps.这艘船配有不少于5个液压泵。
• A group of apprentics were operating the hydraulic press.一群学徒正在开动水压机。

2 shale   

n.页岩，泥板岩

参考例句：

• We can extract oil from shale.我们可以从页岩中提取石油。
• Most of the rock in this mountain is shale.这座山上大部分的岩石都是页岩。

3 trickling   

n.油画底色含油太多而成泡沫状突起v.滴( trickle的现在分词 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动

参考例句：

• Tears were trickling down her cheeks. 眼泪顺着她的面颊流了下来。
• The engine was trickling oil. 发动机在滴油。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

5 futures   

n.期货，期货交易

参考例句：

• He continued his operations in cotton futures.他继续进行棉花期货交易。
• Cotton futures are selling at high prices.棉花期货交易的卖价是很高的。

6 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。

7 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。

8 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

9 pegs   

n.衣夹( peg的名词复数 )；挂钉；系帐篷的桩；弦钮v.用夹子或钉子固定( peg的第三人称单数 )；使固定在某水平

参考例句：

• She hung up the shirt with two (clothes) pegs. 她用两只衣夹挂上衬衫。 来自辞典例句
• The vice-presidents were all square pegs in round holes. 各位副总裁也都安排得不得其所。 来自辞典例句