Published
June 04, 2018
Many Americans have likely noticed a spike in gas prices just as we enter the summer driving season, which is fairly typical due to the changeover from winter to summer crude oil. While higher prices are always a headache and a burden for families, the situation has yet to become as dire as many of the price spikes from decades past—and it likely never will. The days of the world’s biggest oil producers having the U.S. over a barrel, literally, are unlikely to return, thanks in large part to a renaissance in U.S. energy production that has been bolstered by the Trump administration’s emphasis on pro-growth energy policies.
Ten years ago, in June 2008, you and I were paying just over $4 per gallon for gasoline. Today, even with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC, attempting to tamp down much of the global supply to push prices higher, American consumers are weathering the storm with gasoline hovering around $3 a gallon. This is far better than many European countries, where gas prices are well over $6 and rising.
We owe much of this to a dramatic energy renaissance in America that has given us greater control over our own supply. In a short period of time, our country has gone from a major energy importer to a major energy exporter of oil and natural gas. In fact, today the U.S. is the world’s top producer of these critical resources.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is proud of the role our Global Energy Institute has played in this remarkable turnaround. The Institute has fought misguided regulations, run effective policy campaigns, and mobilized our members at every level. It led efforts to lift the oil export ban, unleash production in previously restricted areas, and speed up the permitting process. And it has worked on behalf of the entire industry, uniting the sector behind a common strategy and moving all forms of energy forward.
The Institute is now working to tell the story of the American energy renaissance through EnergyInnovates, a multiplatform initiative spotlighting the ingenuity behind our ongoing energy revolution.
America’s energy revolution hasn’t solved all of our energy challenges, but it certainly has given us a comfortable hedge against a volatile global energy system. It is good for jobs, the economy, and geopolitics. Best of all, our energy industry is poised to continue to grow significantly to reduce our vulnerability—and the U.S. Chamber will be there every step of the way.
About the authors
Thomas J. Donohue
Thomas J. Donohue is advisor and former chief executive officer of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
