The role of energy policy in growing the U.S. economy
Broadcasting live from the Aspen Ideas Festival, Kai Ryssdal sits down for a roundtable with three leaders in the energy industry: Marvin Odum, CEO of Shell; James Rogers, CEO of Duke Energy; and Lynn Jurich, CEO of Sun Run. On the agenda: the major topics currently facing the industry, including questions of energy independence, solar power and exploratory drilling. Also, what the future of U.S. energy policy holds, and how much our resources help or hurt the overall economy.
On energy independence:
Marvin Odum: I’m not against energy independence, I just think we need to be realistic about it.
On how to get renewables in to the energy equation:
James Rogers: I think the important thing is, there is a lot of different models…We need to keep all these options on the table because technological developments are occurring in all of them. Price of solar, as I mentioned, is coming down. Prices of wind is changing. New battery technology is coming. A next generation of nuclear plants is on the horizon. More advanced coal plants is on the horizon. Gas plants that are even more efficient than the ones today. So I’m, in a sense, technology-agnostic as long as I can achieve the objectives of affordable, reliable, clean, 24/7, 365 days a year.
Lynn Jurich: I think one quick thing that we can do in this country is to eliminate a lot of the red tape associated with renewable development. When you look at installing a solar system in Germany, it’s 40 percent cheaper than in the U.S.
To listen to the entire discussion, click “Listen to this story” at the top of the page.
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