    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book I)]
    [June 18, 2008]
    [Pages 840-843]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on Energy
    June 18, 2008

        Good morning. I want to thank Secretary Kempthorne and Secretary Bodman for
    joining me here. For many Americans, there is no more pressing concern
    than the price of gasoline. Truckers and farmers, small-business owners
    have been hit especially hard. Every American who drives to work,
    purchases food, or ships a product has felt the effect. And families
    across our country are looking to Washington for a response.
        High oil prices are at the root of high gasoline prices; behind
    those prices is the basic law of supply and demand. In recent years, the
    world's demand for oil has grown dramatically. Meanwhile, the supply of
    oil has grown much more slowly. As a result,

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    oil prices have risen sharply, and that increase has been reflected at
    American gasoline pumps. Now much of the oil consumed in America comes
    from abroad--that's what's changed dramatically over the last couple of
    decades. Some of that energy comes from unstable regions and unfriendly
    regimes. This makes us more vulnerable to supply shocks and price spikes
    beyond our control, and that puts both our economy and our security at
    risk.
        In the long run, the solution is to reduce demand for oil by
    promoting alternative energy technologies. My administration has worked
    with Congress to invest in gas-
    saving technologies like advanced batteries and hydrogen fuel cells.
    We've mandated a large expansion in the use of alternative fuels. We've
    raised fuel efficiency standards to ambitious new levels. With all these
    steps, we are bringing America closer to the day when we can end our
    addiction to oil, which will allow us to become better stewards of the
    environment.
        In the short run, the American economy will continue to rely largely
    on oil. And that means we need to increase supply, especially here at
    home. So my administration has repeatedly called on Congress to expand
    domestic oil production. Unfortunately, Democrats on Capitol Hill have
    rejected virtually every proposal, and now Americans are paying the
    price at the pump for this obstruction. Congress must face a hard
    reality: Unless Members are willing to accept gas prices at today's
    painful levels--or even higher--our Nation must produce more oil. And we
    must start now. So this morning I ask Democratic congressional leaders
    to move forward with four steps to expand American oil and gasoline
    production.
        First, we should expand American oil production by increasing access
    to the Outer Continental Shelf, or OCS. Experts believe that the OCS
    could produce about 18 billion barrels of oil. That would be enough to
    match America's current oil production for almost 10 years. The problem
    is that Congress has restricted access to key parts of the OCS since the
    early 1980s. Since then, advances in technology have made it possible to
    conduct oil exploration in the OCS that is out of sight, protects coral
    reefs and habitats, and protects against oil spills. With these
    advances--and a dramatic increase in oil prices--congressional
    restrictions on OCS exploration have become outdated and
    counterproductive.
        Republicans in Congress have proposed several promising bills that
    would lift the legislative ban on oil exploration in the OCS. I call on
    the House and the Senate to pass good legislation as soon as possible.
    This legislation give--could get--should give the States the option of
    opening up OCS resources off their shores, provide a way for the Federal
    Government and States to share new leasing revenues, and ensure that our
    environment is protected. There's also an executive prohibition on
    exploration in the OCS. When Congress lifts the legislative ban, I will
    lift the executive prohibition.
        Second, we should expand oil production by tapping into the
    extraordinary potential of oil shale. Oil shale is a type of rock that
    can produce oil when exposed to heat or other process. One major
    deposit--the Green River Basin of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming--there
    lies the equivalent of about 800 billion barrels of recoverable oil.
    That's more than three times larger than the proven oil reserves of
    Saudi Arabia. And it can be fully recovered--and if it can be fully
    recovered, it would be equal to more than a century's worth of currently
    projected oil imports.
        For many years, the high cost of extracting oil from shale exceeded
    the benefit. But today the calculus is changing. Companies have invested
    in technology to make oil shale production more affordable and
    efficient. And while the cost of extracting oil from shale is still more
    than the cost of traditional production, it is also less than the
    current market price of oil. This makes oil shale a highly promising
    resource.

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        Unfortunately, Democrats in Congress are standing in the way of
    further development. In last year's omnibus spending bill, Democratic
    leaders inserted a provision blocking oil shale leasing on Federal
    lands. That provision can be taken out as easily as it was slipped in,
    and Congress should do so immediately.
        Third, we should expand American oil production by permitting
    exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, or ANWR. When ANWR
    was created in 1980, Congress specifically reserved a portion for energy
    development. In 1995, Congress passed legislation allowing oil
    production in the small fraction of ANWR's 19 million acres. With a
    drilling footprint of less than 2,000 acres--less than one-tenth of 1
    percent of this distant Alaskan terrain--America could produce an
    estimated 10 billion barrels of oil. That is roughly the equivalent of
    two decades of imported oil from Saudi Arabia. Yet my predecessor vetoed
    this bill.
        In the years since, the price of oil has increased sevenfold and the
    price of American gasoline has more than tripled. Meanwhile, scientists
    have developed innovative techniques to reach ANWR's oil with virtually
    no impact on the land or local wildlife. I urge Members of Congress to
    allow this remote region to bring enormous benefits to the American
    people.
        And finally, we need to expand and enhance our refining capacity.
    Refineries are the critical link between crude oil and the gasoline and
    diesel fuel that drivers put in their tanks. With recent changes in the
    makeup of our fuel supply, upgrades in our refining capacity are
    urgently needed. Yet it has been nearly 30 years since our Nation built
    a new refinery, and lawsuits and redtape have made it extremely costly
    to expand or modify existing refineries. The result is that America now
    imports millions of barrels of fully refined gasoline from abroad. This
    imposes needless costs on American consumers. It deprives American
    workers of good jobs. And it needs to change.
        So today I'm proposing measures to expedite the refining--refinery
    permitting process. Under the reformed process that I propose,
    challenges to refineries and other energy project permits must be
    brought before the DC Circuit Court of Appeals within 60 days of the
    issuance of a permit decision. Congress should also empower the
    Secretary of Energy to establish binding
    deadlines for permit decisions, and to ensure that the various levels of
    approval required in the refining--refinery permitting process are
    handled in a timely way.
        With these four steps, we will take pressure off gas prices over
    time by expanding the amount of American-made oil and gasoline. We will
    strengthen our national security by reducing our reliance on foreign
    oil. We will benefit American workers by keeping our Nation competitive
    in the global economy, and by creating good jobs in construction and
    engineering and refine--refining, maintenance, and many other areas.
        The proposals I've outlined will take years to have their full
    impact. There is no excuse for delay--as a matter of fact, it's a reason
    to move swiftly. I know the Democratic leaders have opposed some of
    these policies in the past. Now that their opposition has helped drive
    gas prices to record levels, I ask them to reconsider their positions.
    If congressional leaders leave for the Fourth of July recess without
    taking action, they will need to explain why four-dollar-a-gallon
    gasoline is not enough incentive for them to act. And Americans will
    rightly ask how high oil--how high gas prices have to rise before the
    Democratic-controlled Congress will do something about it.
        I know this is a trying time for our families, but our country has
    faced similar strains before, and we've overcome them together. And we
    can do that again. With faith in the innovative spirit of our people and
    a commitment to results in Washington, we will meet the energy
    challenges

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    we face and keep our economy the strongest, most vibrant, and most
    hopeful in the world.
        Thank you for your time.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:30 a.m. in the Rose Garden at the White
    House. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish
    language transcript of these remarks.