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Former Shell Oil CEO John Hofmeister on the President’s energy policies.
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Well the economy may be that -- central -- at tonight's address they count on the president to push for more green for green energy with more on this.
John -- Meister former Shell Oil CEO John welcome got back to show it's always great to have you here.
You know you told our producers something that I thought was really interesting on this score you said this year marks the fit here in erode the crude oil prices have risen.
And there's been no administrative response to this tell us what you mean.
Well five years in a -- Jerry.
January has launched a rise in the crude oil price.
Which has been followed by a rise in the pump price and American consumers.
Have really been taken to the cleaners.
By the rising crude price which is set.
By an international cartel.
If we want to do something about the international cartel.
We need federal government leadership but the presidential level.
To try to get an alternative fuel into the mix such as natural gas.
If we had natural gas as a transportation fuel as a major effort in this country and we've been saying this for five years this is not new in 23 -- This is five year old.
Strip.
And and we've been doing it for the last five years.
We could say to the oil pricing cartel.
Namely OPEC you know what.
We're go -- in a different direction I and it's gonna tell us I think what -- you -- cause I was saying we have that at all.
Their share alternative right there.
Yeah and the -- and -- I can't produce Jerry.
I mean the EPA.
Has made a joke at a -- at all by fining companies for not delivering ethanol that physically cannot be produced.
How bad -- taxation scheme is that.
Where they can't make it science won't allow us to make it but yet the oil companies are paying -- tax for not producing yet it's a joke and it's not -- yeah unfortunate like.
It's a joke and on the show in the past you have said that the president's energy policies generally.
Are no laughing matter you're not a fan what should he be doing in the second four years that he didn't do in the first.
Turned his rhetoric.
Into a real action plan.
He said in the campaign all in all the about where's the leadership.
On expanding.
Offshore and federal leasing for oil and gas production.
Where's the leadership.
On clean coal technology which -- talked about for four years where's the leadership John nuclear Renaissance.
Right John let me.
That Cortese I totally agree with the president's gonna say hey we have a green energy agenda we're making lots of progress there in your responses.
The music man promised river city residents a ban but they never got instruments.
I have no problem with green energy.
Except it cannot deliver what the president says it's going to deliver in the timeframe that he's talking about.
It just -- is that it's it's it's a disturbance.
It's on real.
But it's not happening in the quantities that are necessary not because he's not trying it's because the technology.
Is not -- mature.
We can't produce something from nothing.
And the solar panels today.
Do not have the kind of efficiency that can deliver material energy at an affordable price the same paper window we cannot.
About portable weather is cooler shortly but a couple quick questions here I definitely wanna get you to.
In.
The president last time around -- energy 23 times as one of his favorite things to talk about and you say.
You know -- the really important things to do would be to fix.
There -- the and -- replace existing aging power production facilities.
You know we -- fires on the West Coast that -- that essentially stopped production.
You know we've had.
Towns shut down state shut down but this is a problem with the grid you -- some of these facilities -- hundred years old.
Something happens -- and learn -- I want talking about this at all it's not even on the agenda.
In fact he is.
Unleashing the EPA.
To shut down more coal plants right because -- utilities cannot afford the money.
To upgrade it as you said a 187.
Year old coal plants they're gonna go away that's gonna put the -- -- a more precarious position.
And we're not doing the kinds of things that would really substitute for that such as the nuclear Renaissance which was talked about before he became president.
But he shut down nuclear waste disposal programs that have been worked on for 25 years and there's no substitute for -- so there's not going to be a nuclear Renaissance.
I fear blackouts.
-- abide -- before he's out of.
-- office.
Yeah there was a report out from Wall Street today that I wanna dimension to -- US oil and gas production is evolving so quickly that in five years.
The only.
You know outside resource that we're gonna need for energy is -- -- -- -- -- So at that's what they were saying at Citigroup today do you think that's true and isn't that cause for celebration isn't that the silver lining here.
It could be true but Jerry unfortunately.
It won't be true.
Because what it would take is a substitute.
Of imported crude with natural gas for transportation fuel.
And the administration is doing nothing to enable the infrastructure.
Or to enable the kind of air quality permits and so forth that would allow us to use -- all.
And ethanol as a transportation fuel and personal automobiles.
Meanwhile we can't do compressed natural gas liquefied natural gas but the private sector is doing all the work there's no leadership from the public sector if we really wanted to we'll -- That's actually we've always sectors involved -- know leadership from the public sector Washington's on hold.
John thanks for coming on tonight really appreciate your time were up against a hard break we appreciate your being on tonight.
Thank you Jerry.
And.
