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Consumer Energy Alliance Launches Ad Campaign Urging President Obama to Jump-Start Energy Production in the Gulf of Mexico, Increase Economic Security and U.S. Energy Independence

Consumer Energy Alliance Launches Ad Campaign Urging President Obama to Jump-Start Energy Production in the Gulf of Mexico, Increase Economic Security and U.S. Energy Independence

WASHINGTON, DC – The Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), a leading energy advocacy organization, launched an ad campaign today calling on the Obama Administration to more fully open the Gulf of Mexico to energy production in order to protect America’s economic and energy interests.

Each campaign ad highlights the economic impact of the Gulf permit freeze on small businesses across the country, including a tug boat operator and drilling products producer in Louisiana, a farmer in Colorado and a truck driver in Wisconsin.  All of these small business people are representative of the significant negative consequences of the Administration’s Gulf policy.

“At a time of high unemployment, economic uncertainty and political instability across the globe, the U.S. cannot afford to squander any opportunity to jump-start the economy and increase domestic sources of energy,” said CEA President David Holt. “Opening the Gulf of Mexico for energy production will create thousands of new jobs in nearly every state across the country, spur economic growth and enhance our national security.”

The Gulf of Mexico accounts for approximately 30 percent of U.S. oil production and 11 percent of natural gas production – much of this from deepwater development.  In June 2010, the federal government instituted a moratorium on all deepwater drilling and nearly halted shallow-water drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.  Today, despite the fact that the moratorium has been lifted, the Department of Interior permitting for offshore operations remains at a virtual standstill.  This permit freeze has led to a 250 percent increase in pending exploration and production plans and an 80 percent drop in the number of permits issued in the Gulf.

“The Gulf Moratorium and subsequent permitting freeze have killed 20,000 jobs to date and threaten another 380,000 jobs nationwide,” added Holt. “In addition, consumers and businesses nationwide have faced significantly higher prices at the pump as a result of severe declines in the amount of oil produced in the Gulf of Mexico.”

A recent study by IHS-CERA and IHS Global Insight found that increasing the pace of permit approvals for oil and gas exploration in the Gulf of Mexico would create 23,000 new jobs in virtually every state in the country, bolster U.S. gross domestic product by $44 billion and generate nearly $12 billion in revenue to state and federal treasuries. In addition, opening the Gulf would increase domestic oil production by more than 400,000 barrels per day, reducing U.S. spending on imported oil by $15 billion.

The ads are available for viewing on at http://openthegulf.org.

Consumer Energy Alliance 2011 Annual Report

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Leaked NESCAUM Economic Analysis: Filled with “Assumptions big enough to drive an electric truck through.”

Leaked NESCAUM Economic Analysis: Filled with “Assumptions big enough to drive an electric truck through.”
Michael Whatley of Consumer Energy Alliance comes out against NESCAUM Analysis on low-carbon fuel rules.

WASHINGTON, DC – Reacting to a story in this afternoon’s Greenwire about the leak of NESCAUM’s (Northeast States Coordinated Air Use Management) economic analysis, Michael Whatley, Executive Vice President of the Consumer Energy Alliance said stakeholders should take a step back when reading the economic analysis because it was based on flawed assumptions, that are “big enough to drive an electric truck through” such as the lower cost of biodiesel or electric and natural gas vehicles.

A preliminary reading of NESCAUM’s analysis shows some breathtaking assumptions. For example:

  • NESCAUM assumes that soy diesel will be widely available and cheaper than diesel;
  • NESCAUM assumes that all advanced low carbon fuels will be available in the quantities necessary and at prices lower than gasoline and diesel; and
  • NESCAUM assumes that natural gas and electric vehicles will cost the same as traditional gasoline/diesel vehicles.

“NESCAUM’s analysis assumes in all cases that alternative fuel technologies and advanced renewable fuels will be commercially viable and cheaper than tradition vehicles and fuels for a program that begins in two years. I don’t know how they can make that claim,” said Whatley. “The real world facts are that biodiesel is significantly more expensive than diesel due to high soy crop prices and biodiesel shortages, that we do not have a single commercially viable cellulosic ethanol plant operating today anywhere in the country, and that both natural gas and electric vehicles are substantially more expensive than their traditionally-fueled counterparts.”

Whatley concluded that “It seems a real stretch to make assumptions like those and then put out an analysis that concludes that an LCFS program will have a small cost and net benefit for the economy.  Although we need to meet with NESCAUM and go over the methodologies used in this analysis in order to completely understand their conclusions, it appears that the flaws in this analysis are big enough to drive an electric truck through.”

You can read NESCAUM’s economic analysis here.

Administration Announces New Partnership for Advanced Technology Biofuels for Aviation and Marine Use

Administration Announces New Partnership for Advanced Technology Biofuels for Aviation and Marine Use
CEA praises effort to encourage advanced technology fuels to help meet an ‘all of the above’ energy solution

WASHINGTON, DC – Consumer Energy Alliance applauded the Administration’s creation of a joint venture between the US Departments of Agriculture, Energy, and Navy and the private sector to invest of up to $510 million over the next three years to produce advanced technology aviation and marine biofuels to help power military and commercial transportation.

The announcement comes as part of President Obama’s Blueprint for a Secure Energy Future, which is his administration’s plan for reducing dependence on foreign oil.  The biofuels initiative is being steered by the White House Biofuels Interagency Work Group and Rural Council.

In response to the announcement, CEA president David Holt released the following statement:

“We applaud today’s announcement regarding the formation of a public-private partnership to develop advanced technology alternative aviation and marine fuels. Advanced biofuels need to be a significant part of any “all of the above” solution to our nation’s energy policy. Increased use of advanced biofuels in the aviation and marine sectors not only will help in the battle for energy independence but has the potential to create real jobs in an economy that sorely needs them.”

CEA Vice Chairman of the Board, and Vice President of the Air Transport Association of America John Heimlich added, “this announcement is an important step to helping to diversify our energy portfolio over the long-term.  The aviation industry as well as consumers everywhere could ultimately benefit from this initiative through reduced energy costs and volatility as well as improved US energy security.”

The ABCs of conservation

Schools have been teaching energy conservation for decades. Now more of those schools are able to incorporate a little math into their lessons about the value of turning off the lights. The New York Times reports that one Long Island school district was able to achieve some $350,000 in annual utility savings simply by sticking post-it notes by classroom computers, printers and air conditioners reminding people to turn off equipment that was not in use.

Likewise, New York City schools have reduced energy consumption by 11% since 2008 through similarly simple measures such as installing motion detectors to control classroom lights and unplugging unused equipment.

The lesson could not be clearer: Simple conservation efforts add up.

If there is a silver lining to the rising costs of energy and the reduced funding available for many schools, it’s that these challenging numbers have forced schools to look everywhere for savings. And that has brought them back to basics, underscoring that little things like turning off lights really do make a difference. Never mind the more sophisticated  techniques to reduce utility bills like installing rooftop solar panels, schools around the country are proving that savings are available to anyone willing to invest a little effort – and maybe a couple packages of post-it notes. And some of those savings have paid for more high-tech solutions, such as rooftop solar panels. Indeed, savings beget savings.

This all may sound pretty, well, elementary, but these lessons in conservation are not just for grade-schoolers. Colleges too are going beyond offering coursework in environmental studies these days, to fostering an environment on campus in which students can practice conservation regardless of what they study. A majority of prospective college students now say that the level of “eco-friendliness” on campus would influence their final decision on where to study. When these students go on campus tours they are looking for LEED-certified buildings, solar panels … and for professors who remember to turn the lights off after they finish that lecture on sustainability.

CEA President David Holt on KFQD’s Casey Reynolds Show

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Still one of our greatest resources

The United States isn’t running out of oil, but you might think otherwise given the rate at which we are producing this valuable natural resource. This analysis takes a fresh look at the relation between oil supply, oil demand, and production levels by plotting world crude oil demand since 1970 against U.S. crude oil production. Demand, as everyone knows, is up. What’s stunning is that over that 40-year period, there’s been a negative correlation in the U.S. crude oil output relative to that increased demand. Stated more simply, when you plot U.S. crude production relative to worldwide demand, you get two lines moving in opposite directions.

Not only have U.S. crude oil output and world crude oil demand moved in opposite directions, but, the analysis shows, the U.S. is the only country – among the world’s top 29 oil producers — to show such a strong negative correlation between the two metrics. “No other country in the world,” it notes “—not even those suffering through revolutions and wars – has managed to sustain a pattern such as this for over four decades.”

In fact, while the study notes that different countries have many different approaches to controlling oil production – from defending a target price to pumping as much as is profitable to do so – only the U.S. has policies in place that effectively prevent us “from responding for increased demand for oil, or even put a serious dent in imports.” And, unlike other major oil-producing nations, the U.S. is not replenishing proven reserves. The study’s author Stephen Eule, VP of Climate and Technology at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, observes that this failure to adequately tap our existing reserves marks an important distinction between the way our national energy supply is often characterized and the reality of the situation: The U.S. is not running out of oil, but it is “running out of access” to that oil. The supply problems resulting from that policy seem all the more serious when viewed against other nations’ ability to adapt to increased oil demand.

Aside from recent curtailed production in some known oil-rich locations such as the Gulf of Mexico, the study notes that much of our oil lies in places that remain off limits to exploration and production, including an estimated 24.2 billion barrels of oil in offshore federal lands.

It also stresses that oil shale and oil sand resources, a relatively recent area of focus for oil producers, are estimated to exceed two trillion barrels. Estimates of such vast reserves in regions like Ohio’s Utica shale, which have been the focus of recent producer and investor interest, ought to be good news for our domestic energy policy and energy security. But as the two opposing lines of demand and production show, an abundance of reserves in and of itself says nothing about a country’s ability to use those reserves. While we ought to applaud the technological innovations that have allowed us to identify so much more oil and gas reserves in recent years, we must remember that those discoveries will do nothing for our national fuel supply, without the right policies in place.

August 2011 Newsletter

August 2011 CEA Newsletter
Issue 53


Hot Enough?

Yes, it’s been a hot one. As we move into the dog days of summer, consumers are seeking relief in swimming pools, air conditioned buildings and beach getaways. These days, we are reminded at every turn how energy provides us not just lighting and electricity, but basic comfort as well.

We’re also reminded how high fuel costs pose a crushing burden to many Americans. This great heat wave of 2011, coming at a time of widespread economic distress and high fuel costs, has been more than uncomfortable; it has been devastating. At this writing, the heat wave has been associated with 10 deaths in Philadelphia, 12 in Chicago, and tragically, many more around the country. Often the victims are the weak, the sick and the elderly: people who cannot afford the high cost of a cool room. Their deaths are a sobering reminder that when we talk about affordable energy, the stakes are high.

Of course, it’s not just the temperatures that are simmering this summer. Policymakers in Washington have been engaged in some pretty heated budget debates. Yet as we watched different sides volley opposing budget theories back and forth, we have been struck by a lack of attention to some of the policies we could be promoting now to create jobs and strengthen the economy.

There are many things – across many sectors of the economy that policymakers could be doing to put some of the millions of unemployed Americans back to work and put a little more money in all our pockets. Our role here at CEA is to call attention to the energy policies that will promote job creation and a stronger more secure economy. To that end, a new study from the Gulf Economic Survival Team (LINK) shows how dearly we have paid for last year’s Gulf drilling moratorium, and just how much economic potential has been bottled up in the process.

The study finds that deepwater exploration and development drill permits in the Gulf are down from a prior pace of about 80 per year to only about 30 today. And if you think this is just a local economic crisis, the study offers some compelling evidence that it’s reached far beyond both the Gulf region and the oil industry. From manufacturers in the Midwest to software companies along the West Coast, the slowdown in the Gulf has hurt businesses across the country. All told, a return to more historic drilling practices in the region could create upwards of 230,000 jobs around the country, the study finds.

At a time of budget showdowns and debt-ceiling brinkmanship, restarting the Gulf could easily tap an abundant stream of revenue – about $12 billion in tax revenues and royalties in 2012 alone as well as a $44 billion jolt to the national economy. When was the last time you heard a good, solid proposal out of Washington to create that many jobs and that much revenue with a simple policy shift? In the coming days and weeks we’ll have more to say about this important study, so watch our website and our blog for more details. In the meantime, enjoy those dog days of summer and try to stay cool.

David Holt

 


High Electricity Bills Too? Sure, If the EPA Has Its Way
It’s no secret Americans are struggling with the high costs of daily living – food, gasoline and even the price of diapers have all risen in the past few months.  Right when you thought enough was enough, your electricity bill may become the next victim if Washington bureaucrats don’t get it right. Currently, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is developing new regulations on power plants that could inadvertently close dozens of U.S. utilities and manufacturing plants, and there’s no backup power switch for consumers to turn to.  And as everyone knows, less supply and more demand equal higher prices.

If implemented, these new rules could force approximately 400 facilities to install unnecessary or ineffective environmental technologies to their 16 cooling system operations.  Scientific studies have demonstrated these plants have little if any negative effect on surrounding ecosystems.  Moreover, these upgrades will cost facilities millions of dollars – costs that will inevitably be passed on to consumers.  Consumers may not be left in the dark, but they will be left with a significantly higher electricity bill.

Take Action Now!

 

Energy Day 2011 Updates

Only two and a half months remain before Energy Day 2011. As October 15 approaches, momentum for Energy Day is really ramping up.  With 67 confirmed sponsors and partners and over 80 exhibits, Energy Day 2011 is shaping up to be a can’t-miss event.  On July 14, CEA conducted a conference call on which all sponsors and partners were invited to participate.  We had over 60 participants for the hour and a half call that featured a lively discussion pertaining to exactly what will take place in Downtown Houston on October 15.

Here is the list of confirmed Energy Day sponsors:

ABC-13/KTRK-TV, Air Transport Association, American Public Power Association, Anadarko, Apache, ASES Houston Solar Tour, Bug Ware, Inc., Caterpillar, Children’s Museum of Houston, City of Houston, ConocoPhillips, Consumer Energy Alliance, Consumer Energy Education Foundation, Cooperative for After-School Enrichment (CASE), CSTEM Teacher & Student Support Services, Earth Quest Institute, Eco-Holdings Engineering, El Paso Corporation, Energy People Connect, Environmentally Friendly Drilling Program, eVgo, Foundation for Energy Education, Geophysical Society of Houston, Greater Houston Partnership, Halliburton, Harris County Department of Education, Hess Corporation, Houston Advanced Research Center, Houston Area Land Rover Centers, Houston Community College-Northeast Energy Institute, Houston Geological Society, Houston Independent School District, Houston Museum of Natural Science, Wiess Energy Hall, Houston Northwest Chamber of Commerce – Energize! Houston, Houston Renewable Energy Group, Houston Renewable Energy Network, Houston Technology Center, HoustonWorks USA, Ignite Solar, Independent Natural Resources, International Power | GDF Suez, KBR, Inc., Knowledge Is Power Program (KIPP), Lone Star College, Momentum Luxury Group, NASA-Johnson Space Center, National Algae Association, NRG Energy | Reliant Energy, Offshore Energy Center, San Jacinto College – Energy Venture Camp, Science & Engineering Fair of Houston, Shell, 60 Plus Association,  Society of Exploration Geophysicists, Statoil. Texas Alliance for Minorities in Engineering, Texas Sol Renewable, Texas Southern University, Jesse H. Jones School of Business , Texas TicKids, The Wind Alliance, TransCanada, Western Energy Alliance, University of Houston, University of Texas, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for 21st Century Energy, U.S. DOE Gulf Coast Clean Energy Application Center, YES Prep Public Schools

We need your participation and involvement to make this an outstanding event! Please email Kathleen at KKoehler@consumerenergyalliance.org for details.

All sponsors have begun to give us their exhibit ideas and designs, all of which will be very exciting for the youth of Houston.    Here are a few confirmed exhibits:

  • Combined heat and power system; 8 x 22 Kawasaki engine
  • Natural gas vehicle
  • Solar panels and wind turbines
  • Mobile Offshore Learning Unit
  • Interactive iPad games and applications
  • eVgo is bringing the Freedom Station (electric vehicle charging station) and 1 or two electric vehicles

and plenty more….

Home Landscaping to Maximize Energy

Did you know that the landscaping around your house can help you maximize energy efficiency and cut costs? In the U.S., there are four approximate climatic regions: temperate, hot-arid, hot-humid and cool. Depending on your region, there are numerous tips you can put to use to reduce your energy bills.

For instance, if you live in Alaska, you’re located in the cool region. In this region, dense windbreaks, such as tightly-planted evergreen trees, should be put in place to block winter winds. Those of you located in Florida are in the hot-humid region. In this region, homeowners should channel summer breezes to the home through planting positions.

Click here to discover landscaping tips for energy efficiency in your region.

Source: Energy Savers, U.S. Department of Energy

 

 

Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA)

The Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) has represented independent oil and natural gas producers for three-quarters of a century.   Today, IPAA represents the thousands of independent oil and natural gas producers and service companies across the United States. Independent producers develop 95 percent of domestic oil and gas wells, produce 68 percent of domestic oil and produce 82 percent of domestic natural gas.

Currently IPAA has started a new oil campaign called Declaration of Independents.  Since the inception of the campaign, IPAA has tirelessly worked to provide data to support their position.  In a recent press release IPAA showed some of the data that they worked to collect.  As more data becomes available, IPAA will update their figures to be as up-to-date as possible.  You can find the press release—which includes all of the data– as well as more information on IPAA at www.ipaa.org. 

 

Impact of Gulf drilling restrictions may be worse – and more widely felt – than previously thought

Over the past year, we’ve devoted several blog posts to the state of the Gulf economy and the ways it has been hurt, first by the moratorium imposed on deepwater drilling in 2010, and later, by the de facto restrictions that remain today through permitting delays, even after the moratorium has been officially lifted.  A new study suggests that pain may be more severe than even those of us who have been concerned all along had thought.  But it also quantifies the potential economic benefits of a turnaround in the Gulf – a bright spot in a fairly gloomy economic outlook.

The IHS-CERA study, commissioned by the Gulf Economic Survival Team, found that deepwater exploration and development plan approvals have dropped from an annual average of nearly 130 per year to an annualized pace of fewer than 30 per year, down nearly 80 percent. The study also dispels the notion that this is only a local economic crisis, offering some compelling evidence that this severe slowdown in Gulf drilling activity has reached far beyond both the Gulf region and the oil industry. Vendors throughout the country that support Gulf activities have seen demand for their goods and services decline sharply.  Companies like Caterpillar Inc., in Peoria, Illinois, and software companies all the way out in California have been hurt by the slowdown in the Gulf.  All told, a return to historic permitting paces could create upwards of 230,000 jobs around the country, boost U.S. GDP by $44 billion and generate nearly $12 billion in revenue to state and federal governments.

Perhaps the most critical detail from the study is the finding that virtually every state in the country would benefit from a shift to more proactive drilling policies in the Gulf. For when we talk about the oil and gas industry, we are really talking about much more than drilling rigs and oil and gas pipelines. We are talking about everything from heavy machinery manufacturers to software developers, trucking companies to consulting firms, and the countless supporting businesses working together to improve the ways we explore for, and produce our energy.

Indeed, the 230,000 new jobs expected to result from less restrictive drilling policies would be based not just in Texas and Louisiana, but also in places like Pennsylvania, California, New York, Georgia and Illinois, the study finds. In the same way that we are all – to a greater or lesser extent – consumers of fuel, we are all connected to our country’s energy industry, for better or worse. We hope this study will promote a better understanding of the ways that the health of the domestic energy industry impacts our own economic health so that the whole country can unite around the policies that are better for all of us.

CEA Applauds Passage of Keystone XL Legislation

CEA Applauds Passage of Keystone XL Legislation
Bill Sets Clear and Responsible Schedule for Approving Critical Pipeline Project

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. House of Representatives today passed legislation that would set a firm November 1, 2011, deadline for the White House to approve or deny the President Permit for the Keystone XL pipeline. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Lee Terry (R-Neb.) and entitled the North American Made Energy Security Act (H.R. 1938), passed on a bipartisan basis of 249-147, with one member voting present.

The 1,700-mile proposed pipeline would deliver 700,000 barrels of U.S. and Canadian crude oil per day to refineries in Texas. Keystone XL received approval from Canada’s National Energy Board in 2010, but the project also requires a Presidential Permit from the U.S. Department of State because it crosses an international border.

In June, Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) delivered more than 62,000 public comments supporting the project to the U.S. Department of State, all of which came from people living in the six states through which the proposed pipeline will travel: Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.

In response to the passage of H.R. 1938, CEA executive vice president Michael Whatley released the following statement:

“Approving the Keystone XL pipeline is one of the most important actions the Administration can take to boost a weak economy and ensure stable energy supplies for years to come. The project will directly create 20,000 high-wage jobs and generate more than $20 billion in economic growth, as well as reduce gasoline and diesel prices nationwide and significantly reduce our dependence on oil from unstable regimes that do not share our national values. Unfortunately, approval for the Keystone XL project been delayed for more than 1,000 days, even though typical cross-border pipelines are approved within two years. CEA applauds Congressman Terry’s legislation, as well as his call for a firm schedule for approving this project that is so necessary to America’s energy security.”

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