Ritter, Salazar Cost State "A Cool Billion"

Political Poison Injected By The Two Politicians Led To "The Great Roan Plateau Giveaway" Denver – Colorado lost "a cool billion dollars" in reduced revenues from the Roan Plateau natural gas lease sale today because of the "near constant political poison that Bill Ritter and Ken Salazar injected into this process," according to Greg Schnacke, President of Americans for American Energy. "What we saw today was nothing less than a fire sale, and the people of Colorado got burned," Schnacke said. "I call it the Great Roan Plateau Giveaway." "The results are probably good for the bidders, but the result wasn't anywhere near what it should have been for Colorado taxpayers.  There is a very simple explanation.  The non-stop political attacks on this project by Bill Ritter and Ken Salazar raised the political risk premium of this project to the sky, and bidders reduced their bids accordingly.  That cost our state dearly -- almost certainly one billion dollars." Schnacke said:  "Public documents detail private acreage sales in the same area in the last two years that netted $40,000 to $50,000 per acre. However, these sales did not have the political 'baggage' that the Roan sales today did. That political baggage raised the perceived risk to such an extent that companies reduced their bids dramatically. "There is no hocus-pocus to estimating Colorado's loss today.  It's pretty simple arithmetic.  Ken Salazar and Bill Ritter cost Colorado a cool billion dollars today." "The cold hard truth is that the political poison that these two injected into the debate got them some headlines in the press but cost our state hundreds and hundreds of of millions of dollars," Schnacke said. "It is all about perceived political risk and how that devalues a project like this," said Schnacke. "A company looks long and hard at an investment that carries with it the risk of a state's Governor or Senator trying to delay and stop the project.  It just isn't worth as much." "Bill Ritter and Ken Salazar gave away the store today and it cost Colorado a cool billion dollars."