Changing the Face of a Nation

Evelyn Pyburn

 

Oil and gas producers and industry leaders need to take credit for their achievements, according to Karen Harbert, in speaking before many of that group during the recent Montana Energy Conference in Billings. Harbert is the President & CEO of the Institute for 21st Century Energy.

 

"You are the pioneers," extolled Harbert, adding, "You are being demonized for it, but you are changing the face of the entire country."

 

Without the energy industry, the US GDP would be at -2.6 percent, said Harbert, "and we would be looking at a double digit unemployment rate."

 

The production of unconventional oil and gas in the US accounts for 4 million jobs, will contribute $475 billion to the US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and will send $124.4 billion to the US treasury by 2035. Those numbers could be increased with a change in US policy, said Harbert. By increasing access to America's oil and gas resources, a study says that the industry could create an additional 1.4 million jobs and raise more than $800 billion of additional government revenue by 2030.

 

To gauge how important this industry is to the US, said Harbert, all one needs to do is imagine "what if we shut down production." It would have worldwide impact. "It would affect every industry."

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EPA regulators do not know how their proposals will impact the economy, said Harbert. "They have never modeled it."

 

Because of increased regulations 50 permits for coal burning power plants will be retired by 2020. "That's taking a lot of coal off the system," said Harbert, "We are operating on a razor thin edge."

 

Harbert said, "This is not just a war on coal – they will go after the rest of the industries after that." The administration's philosophy, she said, is "All of the above, and nothing below the ground."

 

Permitting is becoming so difficult in the US, according to Harbert, that the World Bank prefers to lend to other countries where projects can get built faster. A project that took 18 years to get launched in the US, gets started in 18 weeks in China, she explained. "Risk premiums are going up in the US and down in countries that used to be considered high risk."