King: Iran War Proving Value of Diversifying Energy Sources

To watch or download the exchange click here

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME), a member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources (ENR), today argued that current-and rising-oil and gas prices due to the war in Iran are demonstrating the economic value of a more diverse energy strategy that includes renewables. In a committee hearing, King pressed Department of the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum on the importance of expanding American energy resilience by increasing wind and solar energy production to better shield Americans from worldwide spikes in oil prices,

"Energy dominance. You use that term 3 or 4 times. If $4.30 gas and almost $6 diesel is energy dominance, I'd rather go back to what we had before. What's going on now, because of the illegal war in Iran, is drastically affecting our national security and will continue to do so in affecting the people of America. And it seems to me that the situation we're in now is a real lesson in the importance of weaning ourselves from fossil fuels, because we can produce all the oil we want, but as you well know, oil is a worldwide commodity and the price is not set in Maine or North Dakota or Texas. It's set on a worldwide basis, and that's exactly what we're suffering from now. So, I believe and I would like your view, that a more diverse energy source, particularly one that's based on resources that we control rather than a worldwide price, would be beneficial to the country. Your thoughts?" asked Senator King.

Secretary Burgum replied, "Well, I think having secure supply chains is essential. But the idea that somehow, going down a path of wind and solar makes things more affordable is just not factually true."

"Why is that not? Wind and solar are the lowest cost energy sources today by a factor of about two," Senator King pushed back.

Secretary Burgum answered, "But I disagree, because we have no ability to dispatch wind and solar. And so we, if you're going to have wind and solar as part of the mix and the over rotation to those and then prematurely shutting down baseload. Every state that has a renewable target has electricity prices about 50% higher."

"Nobody is saying shut down renewable or baseload prematurely," said Senator King.

Later in the exchange, Senator King added that Burgum's opposition to renewables lies in stark contrast to his home state of North Dakota, where wind power accounts for 35 percent of its energy supply - allowing residents a cushion from the instability of global oil and natural gas markets.

Senator King is a national leader in advocating for climate solutions that support Maine communities and has been one of the Senate's most vocal advocates for improving renewable energy technologies and development as a way to unlock America's clean energy future. Last week, he criticized the Administration for creating uncertainty by canceling approved clean energy projects - especially ones officially permitted and under construction. He has repeatedly emphasized the importance of permitting reform to unlocking the promise of clean energy development opportunities. He has stressed the importance of streamlining and speeding project timelines while maintaining environmental standards to the Secretaries of Energy and Interior.

###