WHICH WAY THE OBAMA ENERGY PLAN?

Obama Tries to Draw Up an Inclusive Energy Plan
Jad Mouawad, March 17, 2009 (NY Times)

"After gasoline prices rose above $4 a gallon last summer, Republican cries of “drill, baby, drill” forced candidate Barack Obama into a rare retreat. Under pressure, he said he would support some expansion of offshore oil drilling, while still emphasizing conservation and renewable energy…Now [the President]…is caught between oil companies, who are reminding the president of his campaign pledge, and environmental groups…

"The renewed fight over offshore drilling comes amid efforts by the White House to map out an ambitious new energy policy for the country. For the first time since the Carter administration, an American president is putting energy at the center of his domestic agenda."

(From the NY Times. (click to enlarge)

"Mr. Obama must decide what strategies are most likely to achieve his goals of diversifying the nation’s fuel supplies, developing alternative energy sources, reducing oil consumption, and curbing carbon emissions that contribute to global warming…

"For the moment, the offshore debate has been eclipsed by the economic crisis and the sharp fall of oil prices…But the magnitude of the nation’s energy challenge is not growing smaller…Oil imports now make up more than 60 percent of the nation’s daily consumption of 19 million barrels…for more than 30 years, drilling off most of the American coastline has been forestalled by opposition from coastal states and environmental groups…Yet considerable untapped oil may lie offshore. Around the world, deepwater exploration has been the most dynamic source of petroleum growth in the last decade…"

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"Since Mr. Obama’s inauguration, petroleum executives have used every opportunity to press their case for more domestic production. With fewer places to drill around the world, the biggest oil companies, including Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Shell, argue that more domestic oil production is not incompatible with the administration’s goals of lowering imports and using energy more efficiently…On the other end of the spectrum, environmental groups are pressing Congress to reinstate a moratorium on offshore drilling…

"The battle over offshore drilling is being renewed as relations between the new administration and the oil industry, which enjoyed a cozy relationship with the Bush administration, have soured…The administration has made clear that it does not want to be rushed about offshore drilling. The Interior Department plans to hold a series of public meetings in April…"