A diverse energy portfolio is needed to meet the world's growing demand and US energy security, a bipartisan delegation from the US House of Representatives' energy committee led by August Pfluger (R-Texas) said on Saturday at the UN Cop 29 summit in Baku, Azerbaijan.
August Pfluger (R-Texas) said that the needed energy portfolio includes LNG, hydropower, nuclear, clean coal and fusion among other energy sources. Aside from hydropower, the delegation did not mention any other forms of renewable energy. "We believe that we're in an energy expansion, that the needs of the world are going to continue to include increased supply," he said.
Asked whether the committee would try and influence US president-elect Donald Trump's decision to pull out from the Paris Agreement, Pfluger said that the recent US election results "spoke loud and clear about wanting to lower inflation and energy is the foundation of that."
"If an agreement is going to hurt. If something is going to actually decrease our ability to do that, then we want to look at that but that's for the President to say," he added.
LNG
Plfuger in February sponsored a bill to eliminate federal licensing on new LNG projects, in response to US president Joe Biden's temporary pause on the review of new export facilities. He commented on the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen mentioning in November that the EU could boost US LNG deliveries as a means to avoid US tariffs.
"I think that's what we've been saying for four years. We have a solution. Let's compete with Russia. The life cycle emissions [in the US] are much better," Pfluger said, adding that the US is a reliable partner achieving its climate goals.
Pfluger concluded that such an agreement will hugely benefit the Nato relationship too.
The commission cannot oblige firms to buy LNG from the US. There is for now no ban on Russian LNG, and all member states would need to agree for such a ban to be imposed. Former European Central Bank president Mario Draghi in September proposed creating a new entity to perform joint purchases on the global markets in a report on EU competitiveness.
