American shale producers are likely to be kept informed overnight about what might be in store for their industry in the next four years when some legislators in Congress and President-elect Joe Biden make commitments.
US Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette seems to think so. When asked by CNBC’s Hadley Gamble whether shale producers, whose drilling boom catapulted America into the world’s largest oil producer in 2018, should be concerned about the future government, Brouillette replied, “Of course.”
“I think they should be honest because there are some in Congress who are going to be pushing climate policies that are going to be very aggressive. So there may be concerns from these people, I know the ESG (Environmental, The Movement for Social and corporate governance is very strong. ”
“The investment money could be a little harder to come by,” he added. “These are all guidelines in which we have to wait and see what happens to this new congress.”
A derrick man secures a length of drill pipe while drilling on a natural gas drilling rig near Montrose, Pennsylvania, USA on Monday April 5, 2010.
Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The ESG movement has gained momentum in recent years. Some major investors – notably BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager – have “made sustainability an integral part of portfolio construction,” according to CEO Larry Fink. Fink wrote earlier that “climate risk is an investment risk” and that it has brought the world to the brink of a fundamental financial transformation.
But climate protection measures at the federal level can frighten slate producers the most. Biden is committed to pursuing “aggressive emissions reductions” with an emphasis on a greener agenda aimed at reducing reliance on fossil fuels in the fight against climate change, and climate researchers almost everywhere agree that this is one poses a serious threat to the planet.
A 2018 report by scientists in President Donald Trump’s own administration warned that climate change will cost the US hundreds of billions of dollars annually and damage human health. Trump, who has consistently supported the fossil fuel industry in favor of American energy independence, responded by saying, “I don’t believe it.”
How Antifossil Fuel is Biden?
The former Democratic vice president has no plans to completely ban fracking, the fossil fuel extraction process used to extract shale gas, or oil and natural gas extraction, which employed nearly 1 million American workers in 2019, according to US official figures.
Many analysts say that he only wants to curb it significantly through regulation.
Biden has pledged to protect national parks and wildlife sanctuaries where Trump has allowed or attempted drilling and says he will “ban new leasing of oil and gas on public land and water” according to his campaign website. He also promised to impose penalties on major corporate polluters, proposing fines and even jail terms, and warned that he would “force polluters to bear the full cost of the carbon pollution they emit”.
And when asked about his approach to the industry in a pre-election presidential debate with Trump, Biden said, “I would move away from the oil industry, yes. The oil industry is very polluting. It needs to be replaced with renewable energy over time . ” . “He later pulled back and told reporters,” We’re not getting rid of fossil fuels. We’re getting rid of fossil fuel subsidies, but we’re not getting rid of fossil fuels for a long time. ”
Democrats can come under pressure
So Biden’s presidency won’t necessarily be a death knell for the industry. It’s important to note that Democrats advocating a climate-centric energy agenda have a very small majority in the House of Representatives and, depending on the outcome of the Georgia runoff in January, may be a minority in the Senate 5. This would effectively prevent them from Pass laws that could adversely affect the oil and gas industry.
Industry experts have warned that reducing support for America’s fossil fuels could jeopardize security by reducing energy independence – a term that is self-debated as the US still has significant amounts of oil from other countries, including Saudi Arabia. import, although these values have fallen dramatically over the past two decades.
When asked if this greater independence will be jeopardized over the next four years, Brouillette replied, “I think any change in administration, if there is one, will oblige the American people to evaluate the new guidelines. But I don’t know the American people will ever step back from that independence that has been established in the last three and a half to four years. “
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