Charles Koch Does Some Fancy Footwork When Asked If Koch Industries Will Benefit From the XL Pipeline

The Charles Koch high-profile campaign continues. From an interview by Daniel Fisher of Forbes:

Q. In your book you say you support the XL pipeline even though it would cost you money. Explain.

A. If that pipeline is built it will reduce the cost of transporting Canadian crude to the Gulf Coast by $3 a barrel. So presumably the price of Canadian heavy oil will increase by $3 a barrel compared to foreign competition, which is what the Gulf Coast refiners are running now. So that will increase the cost of our crude oil at our Minnesota refinery by $3 a barrel. We run 250,000 barrels a day of it, so that will cost us $750,000 a day, which is a little less than $300 million a year. But we’re still in favor of it because it makes good sense.

But Fisher nails him:

Q. Ah, but you have millions of acres of heavy oil reserves in Canada yourself.

And Charles fancy steps to talk about production versus the land owned by KOch Industries, which would skyrocket if the pipeline is installed.

A. First of all we don’t develop oil in Canada. If we find something with reserves or have acreage that goes up in price we sell it. So we approach it more as a trading vehicle. And our total production of heavy oil in Canada is less than 100 barrels a day. Take 50 barrels a day of production and we import 250,000 barrels a day, what are the odds that that acreage is going to be producing 250,000 barrels a day? It’s ludicrous.

  -RW