Methanol on the other hand can be easily, cheaply AND domestically produced from :
trash, waste, biomass, crop residues, coal and natural gas!!!!
And methanol is dirt cheap.
Even now when USA capacity to produce methanol is under 1% of the total transportation fuel needs of this country, it is sold under $ 4 a gallon retail.
The cost to produce and distribute methanol LOCALLY is under $1 a gallon.
In order to substitute the above mentioned 200 billion gallons of gasoline and diesel of USA annual consumption with METHANOL-
USA would need around 500 billion gallons of methanol for a ONE year of consumption.
Methanol could be produced from any biomass, waste or trash. One big standard Methanol PLANT produces : 1 million metric tons/year = 250 million gallons/year
Currently USA produces around 2 billion gallons of methanol/ year. Another 498 billion gallons are needed in order to COMPLETELY switch from oil-gasoline-diesel to methanol.
We need to built 2000 big methanol plants. Or much more smaller, locally distributed methanol production facilities.
Lets assume that cost to build ONE big methanol plant is around $100 million, if done without stealing of course. It may be even less, if we plan to build 2000 such plants. So, in order to switch our total transportation needs from oil to methanol we will have to invest, as a nation: $200 billion dollars.
Thats it. Simple as that. Well, some pennies for retroactive re-equipment of motors as well, for around$100 a motor.)))) Bush's Tax rebate checks should cover it in abundance.
Each year we pay to foreign countries $500 billion for oil.
ANY QUESTIONS? ASK PRESIDENT BUSH AND JOHN McCain !!
references:
1)
1 million metric tons a year is 250 million gallons
2)
http://www.kommersant.com/p521975/r_1/A_
In March 2004, the German Lurgi and the Iranian Petroleum Development Co. signed an agreement on the construction of methanol plant in Iran for €160 million. The construction of a third and fourth methanol plant will bring their output to 3.4 million tons per year, and Iran's share of the world market will grow from 1.49 to 6.35 percent. The construction of the second plant will make Iran the world's largest methanol producer.
3)
http://thefraserdomain.typepad.com/energ
Methanol Holdings (Trinidad) Limited (MHTL) announced that its M5000 methanol plant achieved first methanol production on September 23, 2005 and expected to achieve full production of 5400 tons per day, making it the largest methanol plant in the world, during the first week of October. The total production capacity of MHTL's four plants is now about 4 million metric tons per annum (11,000 tons per day).
4)
http://www.the-innovation-group.com/Chem
Methanol PRODUCER CAPACITY in Millions of gallons per year
Air Products, Pensacola, Fla.
60
Beaumont Methanol, Beaumont, Tex.
280
Celanese, Bishop, Tex.
175
Clear Lake Methanol, Clear Lake, Tex.
200
Coastal Chem, Cheyenne, Wyo.
25
Eastman Chemical, Kingsport, Tenn.
70
Lyondell, Channelview, Tex.
250
Millennium Petrochemicals, LaPorte, Tex.
210
Motiva Enterprises, Delaware City, Del.
100
Total U.S.
1,370
Celanese Canada, Edmonton, Alberta
255
Methanex, Kitimat, B.C.
170
Total Canada
425
Total U.S. and Canada
1,795
5)
http://genomicsgtl.energy.gov/biofuels/t