Institute for Energy Research

Obama’s Energy-Policy Goals Versus China’s

The Obama Administration is continuing its goal of making the United States reduce its carbon footprint by enacting climate and energy legislation, although it may come in "chunks" rather than in one comprehensive bill. According, to President Obama, his proposed energy policy "is good for our economy, it's good for our national security, and, ultimately, it's good for our environment."[0]

The Red Dragon’s Carbon Footprint

In the past few days there has been a common theme within the energy conversation: China’s carbon dioxide emissions are skyrocketing

U.S. Imposes Offshore Drilling Moratorium, but Other Countries Fail to Follow

The Gulf Coast oil spill of April 20, 2010 caused the Obama administration to take some drastic measures, in order to prove to the nation that it was handling the emergency better than the Bush administration handled 2005’s Hurricane Katrina. Those drastic measures include a 6-month moratorium on offshore drilling (set to end November 30, 2010), a panel of “experts” to determine the cause of the spill, and new rules from the Department of Interior to minimize the harm of a future oil spill. But how are other countries responding to the U.S. disaster? Offshore drilling continues in Europe, with no changes thus far to the rules. China is investing in all sorts of oil ventures that include drilling offshore from numerous countries; it is even negotiating with Cuba for drilling rights near the Florida coast. Mexico continues to drill offshore with our support. And the United States is lending Brazil $2 billion to explore off its coast, where experts believe 30 billion barrels of oil awaits discovery and production.

Obama Administration Keeps Offshore Moratorium in Place

Latest political statement from Obama Administration increases uncertainty, imported energy from unstable nations abroad

From “Shining City on the Hill” to “Like a Rollin’ Stone”

Rolling Stone magazine just pulled off another coup with the Obama Administration by landing an interview with President Barack Obama which included his insights on energy. Unfortunately, his insights as disclosed in the lengthy piece are neither insightful nor inspiring, but simply more of the sky-is-falling, government-needs-to-do-more, we-need-to-make-energy-more-expensive nonsense that has characterized Washington's approach to energy for the last several decades.

New Jersey Could Be the “Liberty and Prosperity” State Once Again

At the Earth Summit in 1992, President George H.W. Bush stated, "The American way of life is non-negotiable" in response to calls for curbing U.S. energy consumption and reducing carbon emissions. However, some states kept the dream of reducing energy consumption alive.

Lifting the Offshore Energy Ban, in Name Only

The Administration is considering lifting the offshore drilling ban. That is commendable but long, long, overdue because this one moratorium will eliminate around 154,000 jobs across the economy and cost $68 billion in lost wages. But lifting the ban is not nearly enough. In addition to lifting their explicit ban on offshore drilling, the Administration needs to lift the de facto and procedural ban they have imposed.

Low Carbon Fuel Standards: A Threat to Our Most Secure Source of Foreign Oil

Canada is the largest source of U.S. oil imports, supplying 21 percent of U.S. petroleum imports in 2009.[0] But Canadian oil reserves, though abundant (the second largest in the world), are mainly composed of oil sands. Oil sands are a heavy, unconventional oil that exist in a semi-solid or solid phase. They need to be heated or diluted with hydrocarbons to flow like conventional crude oil. Because oil sands require additional processing, compared to conventional crude, they require higher oil prices to be economic. Their production also results in slightly higher levels of greenhouse gases than conventional crude oil, also owing to the additional processing required.[ii]

Deep Water Ban Hurts Shallow Water Workers

IER Testimony for the Hearing on the Global Clean Energy Race

Download the PDF of this testimony: Green Energy Competition Testimony The Institute for Energy Research (IER) is a non-profit organization that conducts historical research and evaluates public policies in energy markets. IER articulates free market positions that respect private property rights and promote efficient outcomes for energy consumers and producers. IER staff and scholars educate policymakers and the general public on the economic and environmental benefits of free market energy. The organization was founded in 1989 as a public foundation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Funding for the institute comes from tax-deductible contributions of individuals, foundations, and corporations.

The Administration’s De Facto Moratorium on Shallow Water Energy Exploration

The Obama Administration has used the Deepwater Horizon disaster to achieve the radical goal of almost completely shutting down energy exploration in the Gulf of Mexico. After the tragedy that cost the lives of 11 crewman, the Administration implemented a moratorium on drilling in deepwater. In theory, a stoppage to assess what went wrong seemed reasonable. But as actual events have shown, the moratorium in deepwater was, in reality, a moratorium in shallow waters as well.

Time Running Out for Big Wind

With only a few short weeks left before Congress adjourns, the wind lobby is ramping up its efforts to convince policymakers of the need to impose a federal renewable energy mandate that would guarantee a government-induced market share for wind energy companies. That is understandable, considering that unless Congress acts now (or during a lame duck session), future prospects for such a federal mandate are about as dim as the incandescent light bulb's.

IER Presents its Case on Markey Hearing

WASHINGTON--In advance of today's House Select Committee on Energy Independence Global Warming hearing on the global clean energy race, the market-based Institute for Energy Research (IER) released prepared testimony, which details important facts often overlooked in the national conversation on energy. To read the full testimony, click here.

Expensive Energy Mandate a Raw Deal for Taxpayers of Every Party

WASHINGTON – Over the August recess, proponents of a national renewable electricity standard (RES) went on an all-out push to convince policymakers that a federal mandate for expensive and often unreliable energy consumption was a good deal for consumers and domestic manufacturing. While they may have been successful in lobbying a handful of politicians to introduce a bipartisan RES bill, the facts surrounding such a proposal have not changed.

Don’t Wish Upon an Energy Star to Save the Environment

Energy Star was born in 1992 as the child of the EPA and the Department of Energy as a volunteer labeling program for devices that are 10 to 20 percent more efficient than the federal energy regulation. Since then, over 17,000 businesses have received this label in some capacity, but has the star lost its magic? Our friends at NPR seem to think so, and so do we.

OVERBLOWN: Further Analyses

Originally posted on MasterResource by Jon Boone, September 15, 2010 SCIENCE IS THE DISINTERESTED SEARCH FOR THE OBJECTIVE TRUTH ABOUT THE MATERIAL WORLD. – Richard Dawkins This post in our series looks at how the integration of wind variability affects thermal activity on the grid, favors flexible natural gas generators, and influences economic dispatch and the spot market. It also examines how estimates of carbon emissions are derived and summarizes the limitations of statistically based knowledge. It concludes with a discussion of what Energy Information Administration (EIA) actually says about the causes of carbon emission reductions in the country over the last three years

OVERBLOWN: Getting to the Facts on Emissions

Facts are stubborn, but statistics are more pliable-- Mark Twain This section reviews the criticism AWEA makes about the Bentek report and the evidence the organization offers purporting to prove how wind reduced substantial greenhouse gas emissions in Texas and Colorado. The section concludes with an examination of what the EIA data really show for those states for 2007 versus 2008—and what the official Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports say about causal factors for any CO₂ reductions.

Welcome!

Hello, and welcome to the Institute for Energy Research’s (IER) new and improved home on the internet. We’re all very excited to launch this website, which we hope will become true one-stop-shopping online for anyone interested in energy, government regulations and policies that affect our energy supplies, and energy’s relationship to our economy.

The Beauty of Energy

OVERBLOWN: Windpower on the Firing Line

Originally posted on MasterResource by Jon Boone, September 13, 2010 The less one knows about the universe, the easier it is to explain--Leon Brunschvicg