We operate in harsher and more expensive environments - in the Arctic, in deep water, and in remote deserts. Historically, technology has enabled us to find and develop new reserves in these more difficult operating environments without significantly increasing costs. Recent improvements in seismic data collection and interpretation, deepwater drillships and floating production systems, and other technological advances suggest that this pattern will continue into the future. Another new technology, Subsea Separation, installs separators on the seabed itself, which will enable us to extract more oil. In addition, we see great potential in the use of new composite materials for risers and tethers.
Multilateral wells are also welcome advances in drilling.
In the area of natural gas, the technology already exists to capture millions of cubic feet of natural gas that is currently being flared - and to make economically feasible the development of stranded gas reserves. Technology offers the promise of valuable new products fashioned from hydrocarbons. Carbon fibers is one example. I'm extremely excited about the proprietary technology Conoco has developed in this field. We see growth opportunities in construction and automobile manufacturing, with our carbon fiber strengthening concrete and plastics so they can replace steel and aluminum in some applications.