Published: 10-10-08
Austin Texas - Attendees of the 2008 Clean Carbon Summit and Policy Expo today heard Texas Railroad Commission Chairman Michael Williams’ vision for the state’s energy future. Williams who also chaired the Governor’s Competitiveness Council and the Texas FutureGen effort was one of several federal state and industry leaders to address the two-day conference.
“Texas must have a diverse energy portfolio. And we must have a clean energy portfolio” Williams said. “Texas will have both - by applying advanced technologies to oil and natural gas renewable energy nuclear biomass hydro petcoke and yes coal and other carbon-based fuel sources.”
Texas is the largest energy consumer in the nation and leads the country in both oil and natural gas production and wind generation. The state is also in the top five in coal and uranium production.
Williams noted “Clearly Texas has a tremendous stake in the nation’s evolving energy policy. Not only do we have vast resources but also the researchers the technology the entrepreneurs and the leadership to participate in the development of sound and reasonable regulations. These regulations from carbon management to offshore drilling will impact the diverse clean energy projects being considered around the state.”
Texas submitted two sites that were finalists for the federal FutureGen project an ambitious near-zero emissions coal gasification project. In December 2007 the project was reconfigured from a large single site effort to multiple smaller scale components.
“Not only did Texas have the two best sites in the country - I’ll submit to you that we had the best twelve sites in the country for clean energy projects that featured viable carbon capture components” Williams offered. “Now that the scope of FutureGen has changed we are making a concerted effort to bring state-of-the-art technologies to Texas.”
Williams continued “From the FutureGen effort to the Governor’s Competitiveness Council we have laid the groundwork for an elevated collaboration between the public and private sectors to continue the growth of a diverse energy portfolio for the future of Texas.”
The FutureGen proposals offered significant incentives at the state and local levels and the August 2008 Governor’s Competitiveness Council Energy Plan made legislative recommendations for the development of energy projects around the state.
Williams concluded “Our state’s vast energy resources and experiences are foundations that will continue to support the evolving energy industry.”
