Plame was spying on Saudis?

Rumor

Here's a totally unverified and unverifiable rumor seen on the comment boards at The Oil Drum:

What I am about to say is complete speculation, so take it with a huge grain of salt. I have heard that Valerie Plame was not working on WMD issues in the Middle East when her cover was blown by the infamous White House leak. Rather, what I have heard is that she was actually involved with a front company getting hard data on whether Matthew Simmons charges against Saudi Arabia's reserves were true or not...

I have absolutely no idea if this is true, but I am certain that Simmons must have stirred up quite a reaction deep in Cheney's ``secure, undisclosed location.''

Meanwhile, look at the calming reassurances against breakdown of the global energy supply system that have to be given to keep markets from exploding in the face of rapidly-increasing Middle East violence:

Adam Plowright, Agence France Press in The Daily Star: PARIS: World demand for oil will rise at about 2 percent a year for the next five years, but OPEC countries are leading an expansion of production that will replenish a supply safety cushion, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said Wednesday. Investment by OPEC will increase the crude production capacity of the 11 countries belonging to the cartel by 10 percent from 2006 to 2011, with production of natural gas liquids set to increase by 44 percent. These increases, coupled with rising output from non-OPEC countries, will mean that growth in oil supplies outstrip growth in demand every year until 2010, adding vital spare production capacity to the global oil system.

Take this with about the same grain of salt as the Plame-Saudi story.