Energy Development

In December, the Obama administration released revised Draft Guidance to examine the impacts of climate change under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NEPA requires that federal agencies look at the environmental impact of their major actions. The administration’s new greenhouse gas guidance would make an already costly and time-consuming process even more onerous without providing any new and actionable information.

This administration’s proposal is the latest move by the...
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The International Energy Agency (IEA) claims in a new study that the world will have to triple “investments” in renewable energy to stave off the most severe effects of climate change. The presumption is that governments will continue to mandate the use of less fossil fuels and that renewables will need to make up the gap—and still provide energy to billions of people around the world. IEA should have examined a more fundamental question: why are we weaning ourselves off of fossil...
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Next week, the House will consider the FY 2016 DOE Appropriations bill. The Department of Energy has extended its reach into areas that are outside the bounds of the proper federal role with regard to energy. It should serve the public by providing basic research and development that is energy-source neutral and maintain the national laboratories to help advance innovation. Unfortunately, the DOE unfairly promotes and commercializes certain energy products and technologies, thereby stifling...
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A growing chorus of opposition is emerging against the U.S. Export-Import Bank. The bank’s authorization expires June 30, but while President Obama and his corporate cronies are lobbying for reauthorization, a coalition of organizations representing millions of Americans sent a letter to Congress calling for an end to Ex-Im, which “unfairly hurts domestic companies and risks billions of taxpayer dollars.” The Ex-Im Bank is the official export credit agency of the U.S. government....
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Randy Simmons, professor of political economy at Utah State University, recently co-authored an article with Strata Policy Analyst Megan Hansen that sheds light on the true, hidden cost of wind power. Simmons and Hansen find that the enormous amount of federal subsidies and grants given to wind power every year make it hard for Americans to understand just how much they're paying for such an inefficient, costly resource. An excerpt from their findings follows:

The high costs of federal...

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AEA President Tom Pyle joined Mary Kissel on WSJ Live to discuss the ways in which energy producers might adapt to the historically low oil prices made possible by America's shale revolution. And while private innovation has led the charge, Pyle recognizes that even more could be done if the federal government simply got out of the way.
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From the first pitch on Opening Day to the final out of the World Series in October, baseball is brought to you by oil and natural gas. The smell of the fresh-cut grass; the uniforms our favorite players don 162 times a year. Even the cold beer you enjoy on a sunny spring afternoon in the bleachers comes courtesy of petroleum products. So next time you head out to the stadium, most likely wearing a shirt made from natural gas and driving a car fueled by oil , be thankful for the energy...
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The Sacramento Bee headline read, “Tom Steyer wants ‘answers’ for California gas price spike.” California lawmakers had just started to hold hearings investigating the recent rise in gas prices, which were below $2 in some areas a few months ago but have since risen to over $3. The billionaire climate activist said he wanted to make sure Californians get a “fair shake” at the pump. This is rich coming from Steyer, who supports policies that drive up energy costs for...
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Last week, AEA's Dan Ziegler penned an op-ed discussing the need for free-market advocates to reframe the global discussion about our environment. The text of the piece  follows: We don’t have to wreck our economy to save the planet. The national environmental lobby has never been stronger. The federal government, led by President Obama and an army of bureaucrats at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is radically transforming how Americans use and consume energy. Meanwhile,...
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Energy poverty is a foreign concept for the majority of Americans. But it is a stark reality for the 1.3 billion people around the world living without electricity. In a recent opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal, Matt Ridley expands on the global problem of energy poverty—and how fossil fuels can begin to solve it. The following excerpt illustrates energy’s ability to improve our lives:

The more energy you have, the more intricate, powerful and complex you can make a system....

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