The White House, Big Oil, and the "American Power Act" [View All]

The White House, Big Oil, and the "American Power Act" by Michael Collins

The bill has the support of Duke Energy's CEO, hardly comforting. Of greater significance, the Peterson Institute for International Economics released a favorable analysis that showed the likely impact of the bill on energy consumption. The institute is named after noted right winger Peter G. ("Pete") Peterson who funds and controls the organization. Odd bed fellow for Kerry and Lieberman?


http://www.eenews.net/public/25/15767/features/documents/2010/05/20/document_gw_02.pdf">Peterson Institute, p. 4

The chart shows the difference between business as usual and the implementation of the American Power Act. By 2030, the country will be using 5.4 quadrillion btu's less energy as a result of this bill. That's just a 5% reduction from our current levels. This indicates that either conservation will not be a serious effort or that efforts are anticipated to fail.

There are significant reductions in coal usage, estimated at 44% by 2030. Petroleum usage will be reduced by only 7.5% by 2030.

The impact on renewable energy is negligible. Of special note, wind and solar power are virtually unchanged by 2030 and not significant contributors to alternative energy sources despite the great promise that both offer.

We do get a significant dose of nuclear power, however. The BP mess might look mild if one of those plants fails in a big way.

The net effect of the bill is to keep big oil in charge. Petroleum will be 34% of the total energy used under business as usual or the American Power Act scenarios. However, the prices and profits of big oil will rise exponentially. This is a certainty given the increased difficulty of identifying and tapping reserves and the notion of peak oil now adopted by the industry and the political hierarchy.

The critical element of the act that allows this capital preservation and expansion opportunity for oil is the ridiculously low gains listed for solar and wind power, both of which are open source, widely available, and eternally renewable.

Health reform legislation claimed to expand services but was largely a means of preserving the private insurance industry with little regulation. The recently passed financial reform package by the Senate keeps the perpetrators of the crisis in charge without truly addressing underlying greed and corruption.

In the same spirit, the American Power Act addresses coal pollution but not that from big oil petroleum products.

Of major significance, the act creates a guaranteed revenue and profit expansion scheme for big oil by diminishing the impact of highly viable alternative sources of energy.

Another triumph for The Money Party.

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