Trump: An America First Energy Plan
Looks like President-elect Trump intends to pursue energy policy that will be very beneficial to domestic oil and gas producers and America's economy. Key points from his energy platform, reproduced below, include:
Declare American energy dominance a strategic economic and foreign policy goal of the United States;
Become, and stay, totally independent of any need to import energy from the OPEC cartel or any nations hostile to our interests; and
Encourage the use of natural gas and other American energy resources that will both reduce emissions but also reduce the price of energy and increase our economic output.
Based on these points, Trump wants not only American energy independence but also wants American energy to dominate world energy markets. Achieving these goals will provide a substantial boost for our economy and also put us in a stronger position with regard to foreign policy.
For this to happen we need policies that will help American oil and gas producers return to growth mode, producing enough oil and gas to meet America's requirements and also export meaningful quantities of oil and gas to other nations. We need energy policies in place that will help our producers lower the cost of finding and producing domestic oil and gas and quickly connect our major producing basins to multiple markets, including foreign markets. Prices for American oil and gas need to be high enough to support production growth but also low enough to support demand growth.
These are some of the things I would look for in 2017:
Reduced regulation on domestic oil and gas producers;
Accelerated approval of pipeline projects, including those that would relieve the bottlenecks in the Marcellus area;
Accelerated approval of LNG, NGL, and crude export facilities, natural gas power plants, ethylene crackers, and gas to liquids plants;
Modifications to the Iran nuclear deal that slow down oil and gas development in Iran.
Trump's goals are aggressive, and changes in energy policy are easier said than done, but with Republican control of both houses of congress his goals are achievable.
AN AMERICA FIRST ENERGY PLAN
DONALD J. TRUMP’S VISION
Make America energy independent, create millions of new jobs, and protect clean air and clean water. We will conserve our natural habitats, reserves and resources. We will unleash an energy revolution that will bring vast new wealth to our country.
Declare American energy dominance a strategic economic and foreign policy goal of the United States.
Unleash America’s $50 trillion in untapped shale, oil, and natural gas reserves, plus hundreds of years in clean coal reserves.
Become, and stay, totally independent of any need to import energy from the OPEC cartel or any nations hostile to our interests.
Open onshore and offshore leasing on federal lands, eliminate moratorium on coal leasing, and open shale energy deposits.
Encourage the use of natural gas and other American energy resources that will both reduce emissions but also reduce the price of energy and increase our economic output.
Rescind all job-destroying Obama executive actions. Mr. Trump will reduce and eliminate all barriers to responsible energy production, creating at least a half million jobs a year, $30 billion in higher wages, and cheaper energy.
KEY ISSUES
Energy costs the average American household $5,000 per year. As a percentage of income, the cost is greater for lower-income families. [Fox News, Sept. 3, 2015]
Shale energy production could add 2 million jobs in 7 years.
The oil and natural gas industry supports 10 million high-paying Americans jobs and can create another 400,000 new jobs per year. [The New York Times, June 20, 2015]
https://www.donaldjtrump.com/policies/energy/
