[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 121 (Thursday, July 25, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5508-S5509]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE PETROLEUM ASSOCIATION OF WYOMING

  Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I rise today to celebrate the 50th 
anniversary of the Petroleum Association of Wyoming. On August 21 
through 23, the Petroleum Association of Wyoming will celebrate 50 
years of operation during its annual Rockies Petroleum Conference in 
Laramie, WY.
  In 1910, Wyoming Governor B.B. Brooks sought to protect the State's 
oil industry and organized an oil convention. In 1921, The Rocky 
Mountain Oil and Gas Association was formed in Casper, WY, to advocate 
for oil-based trade and production in the Rocky Mountain States. 
Governor Brooks served as the first president, along with volunteer 
Secretary-Treasurer George Jarvis. In 1945, President Paul Stock was 
elected president.
  In 1974, the Rocky Mountain Oil and Gas Association's Wyoming 
division office and the Wyoming Oil Industry Committee joined forces to 
form the Petroleum Association of Wyoming. Wyoming's oil history dates 
back to 1832 when fur trader Capt. B. L. E. Bonneville traveled to the 
Wind River Valley. He found oil springs southeast of present-day 
Lander. The State's first oil well would be drilled there five decades 
later by Pennsylvania oilfield explorer Mike Murphy. Murphy sold mainly 
to the Union Pacific railroad, where the oil was used as a lubricant 
for railcar axles, and to tanners in Utah.
  Wyoming's first oil refinery was built in Casper by the Pennsylvania 
Oil and Gas Company in 1895. It was located east of Center Street, near 
the Chicago and North Western railroad tracks. The refinery produced 
100 barrels of oil per day. Several more refineries opened around the 
State in the decades following. By 1920, there were 16 refineries in 
Wyoming. Total production capacity was 88,000 barrels of crude oil per 
day. Today, four operating refineries are located in Casper, Sinclair, 
Evanston, and Newcastle. They have the capacity to refine 125,850 
barrels per day. In 2023, Wyoming ranked eighth nationally in crude oil 
production with 96.8 million barrels. At its height in 2022, Wyoming 
had 27,951 producing oil and gas wells. Today, nearly 55 percent of 
Wyoming's surface lands are owned by the Federal or State government. 
Federal lands issues are a top priority for the Petroleum Association. 
The organization advocates for multiple uses for the safe and 
sustainable development of oil and gas resources. It works to educate 
landowners on their rights and responsibilities concerning mineral 
development.
  In 2021, Wyoming's petroleum industry employed over 20,000 people 
with an annual payroll of $3.6 billion plus. Oil and gas producers paid 
$2.42 billion in taxes in 2023. This helps to fund numerous areas, 
including education, public infrastructure, and local governments. 
Today's association members range

[[Page S5509]]

from the majority of top producers to small mom-and-pop operations. 
These account for more than 90 percent of Wyoming's oil and natural gas 
production. My friends Bruce Hinchey, John Robitaille, and the late 
Rick Robitaille all served in executive positions with the association. 
They, along with current President Pete Obermueller and all past and 
present employees, put in countless hours with the Wyoming Oil & Gas 
Commission, State legislators, Governors, and the Federal delegation. 
These entities work together on permitting, BLM Environmental Impact 
Statements, environmental lawsuits, and so much more.
  The Petroleum Association is led by these staff, board officers, 
board of directors, and management committee: President Pete 
Obermueller, Vice President and Director of Communications Ryan 
McConnaughey, Regulatory Affairs Director Colin McKee, Office Manager 
and Executive Assistant Rachel Sanborn, Chairman Shelley Shelby, 
Continental Resources, Vice Chairman Gabriel Sepulveda, Williams, and 
Secretary-Treasurer Peter Wold, Wold Oil Company, Joe Milczewski, 
Occidental Petroleum Corporation, Dan Zilmer, Merit Energy Company, 
Brett Schuman, Halliburton, Steve Degenfelder, Kirkwood Oil and Gas, 
LLC, Greg Pulliam, Exxon | XTO Energy, Inc., Paul Sander, Aethon Energy 
Company, Tim Muniz, Impact Exploration, Nick Piatek, Hilcorp Energy, 
Frances MacDonald, Anschutz Exploration Corporation, Niko Welch, 
Vaquero Big Horn, Bryce Ballard, Ballard Petroleum Holdings, Chad 
McLawhorn, Contango Oil and Gas Company, Chris Fling, Primary Fuels, 
LLC, Kaylene Gardner, Crowheart Energy, Josh Demorrett, ConocoPhillips, 
David Bush, Black Hills Energy, Tom Kirkwood, Westco Operating, Inc., 
Macey Wallace, Ovintiv, Jasmine Allison, PureWest Energy, Jenna Mays, 
ExxonMobil, Dave True, True Oil, LLC, Kyle True, Diamond Oil, LLC, Hank 
True, Eighty-Eight Oil, LLC, Paul Ulrich, Jonah Energy, LLC, Teddy 
Carter, Devon Energy Corp, Tracy Opp, EOG Resources, Inc., Tom 
VanKleef, Oil Mountain Energy, and Eli Bebout, Nucor Oil and Gas.
  It is an honor to celebrate the crucial work done by the association 
over the last 50 years. My hope is that oil and gas will remain a 
strong and viable industry for decades to come. Warmest congratulations 
to the Petroleum Association of Wyoming on your golden anniversary.

                          ____________________