|
|
|
 ENERGY PLAN--Speaking at a national meeting of business writers in Kansas City, Mo., on September 8, T. Boone Pickens said a fool with a plan will be more successful than a genius without a plan. Pickens said he is a fool with a plan, an energy plan for this country. (Journal photo by Doug Rich.) Energy is no longer a sleeping dogBy Doug Rich The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second best time to plant a tree is today. T. Boone Pickens said the same is true for a national energy plan. Speaking at a national gathering of business editors and writers in Kansas City, Mo., Pickens outlined his energy plan for this country. The well-known oilman said the reason we did not develop a comprehensive national energy plan 20 years ago was a lack of leadership and cheap oil. Pickens began pitching his energy plan to presidential hopefuls in 1996 but he said politicians don't like to wake a sleeping dog. That sleeping dog is awake now and the U.S. is struggling to keep it under control. Pickens said that 85 million barrels of oil are produced around the world every day. The U.S., with only 4 percent of the world's population, uses 21 million of those barrels every day. "At the current price of oil, we will send $700 billion dollars out of this country this year," Pickens said. "That is four times the annual cost of the Iraq war." Today the U.S. imports 64 percent of the oil that it needs. If the next 10 years are like the last 10 years that will expand to 80 percent. "At that point, we will have lost control," Pickens said. The Pickens Plan would use natural gas to meet a portion of our transportation fuel needs instead of using it to generate electricity and replace it with wind-generated electricity. Today the U.S. gets 50 percent of its electricity from coal, 22 percent from natural gas, 20 percent from nuclear, and 8 percent from other sources. "Harnessing the power of wind to generate electricity will give us the flexibility to shift natural gas away from electricity generation and put it to use as a transportation fuel, reducing our dependence on foreign oil by more than one-third," Pickens said. Although there are nearly 8 million natural gas powered cars in the world today, Pickens would start by switching semi-trucks and fleet vehicles to natural gas. Pickens noted that only 142,000 of those 8 million natural gas fueled vehicles are in the U.S. Battery powered vehicles are being touted by many as the solution to our energy problems. Pickens said the batteries we have today would not even begin to move a fully loaded 18-wheeler. Natural gas can move heavy vehicles. Pickens said natural gas is one of the cleanest, safest, and most useful forms of energy. It is also this country's second largest energy resource. His website, Pickensplan.com, states that domestic natural gas reserves are twice that of petroleum. Nearly 98 percent of the natural gas used in the U.S. is from right here in North America. Wind energy is the key to this plan. "We have the most beautiful wind corridor in the world," Pickens said. Most of that beautiful corridor runs through the Great Plains from Texas to the Canadian border. Pickens said that North Dakota alone has the potential to provide power for more than a quarter of the country. According to Pickens, wind facilities in this corridor could produce 20 percent of the electricity for the U.S. at a cost of $1 trillion. Another $200 billion would be needed to build transmission lines to carry that power to urban centers on the east and west coasts. "Right now all we have is an 'accidental grid,'" according to Pickens. "I think private industry can do this job." Pickens said. Pickens likened the task of building a national system of transmission to that of building the interstate highway system in this country. That seems like a big investment but it is a one-time cost. Pickens said it is a bargain compared to the $700 billion we are spending on foreign oil every year in this country. A side-benefit is the economic revival for rural America. Pickens points to Sweetwater, Texas, as an example of what could happen in small communities across the Great Plains. Mesa Power, Pickens' company, is building a large wind farm near Sweetwater, which is just north of Pampa, Texas. Pickens said both political parties in this country need to work together to solve the energy problem. However, Pickens is not sure either party understands the magnitude of this situation. "If we do nothing, this country will be broke in 10 years," Pickens said. "Something needs to be done right now. That $700 billion is a ticking bomb." For more information on T. Boone Pickens energy plan go to PickensPlan.com. Doug Rich can be reached by phone at 785-749-5304 or by e-mail at richhpj@aol.com. 9/22/08 Date: 9/17/08
Copyright/Privacy
Copyright 1995-2009. High Plains Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Any republishing of these pages, including electronic reproduction of the editorial archives or classified advertising, is strictly prohibited. If you have questions or comments you can reach us at High Plains Journal 1500 E. Wyatt Earp Blvd., P.O. Box 760, Dodge City, KS 67801 or call 1-800-452-7171. Email: webmaster@hpj.com |
Market Snapshot Inside Futures |
