As energy prices continue to soar with increasing impact on manufacturers and consumers, the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) warned that without access to affordable oil and natural gas supplies in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) the Administration is risking jobs and hurting consumers.
In comments submitted today to the Mineral Management Services (MMS) on its draft Five Year Lease Plan for the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), the NAM said current policies, including the decision not to open up all planning areas in the OCS, are creating an unnatural supply and demand imbalance. The NAM urged the MMS to take bolder action and to include all 26 of the available OCS lease areas in its final plan, due to take effect in July 2007.
“The draft plan unnecessarily limits leasing within the Lease/Sale 181 area, thereby blocking immediate access to known supplies of natural gas and oil,” NAM President John Engler said. “It is no coincidence that the previous recession began when natural gas prices began to climb. For U.S. manufacturers – which use one-third of our nation’s energy – access to this area is vitally important to future economic growth and job creation.”
Citing the nearly 11,000 comments the MMS received from the public as proof of strong political support, of which approximately 80% supported a significantly increased OCS leasing plan, Engler said that escalating energy prices are part of a larger economic issue that goes well beyond manufacturing.
"We are seeing first hand the impact of higher oil and natural gas prices, the vulnerability of our energy security, and the need for more and diverse supplies of energy,” Engler continued. “The fact is that our country has ample natural gas and oil reserves. Opening up the vast reserves in the OCS will enable states to access them, if they desire, so jobs stay in America and consumers pay less to heat and cool their homes and drive their cars.”
In response to the energy crisis facing industry and consumers alike, the NAM recently helped launch the Consumer Alliance for Energy Security (CAES), a broad coalition of consumer, industrial and institutional energy users. A recent survey by CAES showed that nearly 90% of respondents believe that rising energy costs are having a significant impact on their family budget and nearly 6% of those polled supported accessing the domestic energy available on the OCS.
Further information on the OCS leasing, including a visual of the Lease/Sale 181 area and a copy of the Five Year Lease plan, are available at http://www.nam.org/ocsleasing.