All the applications opposed by Fort McMurray officials were ultimately approved, and just a few months ago an American company, Hyperion Resources, announced plans to build the first new oil refinery in this country in thirty years, to handle increasing volumes of tar-sands crude.

NEWYORKER: Unconventional Crude

The House Natural Resources Committee Thursday approved an amendment to bar new offshore oil and gas drilling permits to BP or any other company with a significant history of violating worker safety or environmental law.

FORBES: House Committee Could Compel BP To Unload Gulf Assets To Rivals

Eventually, the bad luck came to an end, new land was placed under cultivation, new sources of oil were found in the Gulf of Mexico and the North Sea and resources got cheap again.

FORBES: Magazine Article

In October, it released its first estimates for the neighboring (in Ohio) or underlying (in Pennsylvania and New York) Utica shales of 38 TCF, plus 940 million barrels of unconventional oil resources and 208 million barrels of unconventional liquids.

FORBES: In Obama's Second Term, Shale Gas Production Not Likely to Slow Down

The Republicans say he is blocking the exploitation of the country's energy resources, so he promised more exploitation of offshore oil and gas and called for new tax credits for clean energy.

ECONOMIST: Lexington

They recently discovered significant new oil reserves, and we can share American technology and know-how with them as they develop these resources.

WHITEHOUSE: America��s Energy Security