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Politics : Rat's Nest - Chronicles of Collapse -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: T L Comiskey who wrote (9902)	2/1/2010 11:43:36 AM
From: Wharf Rat	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 24214

"Energy-Louisiana Style" at the 2010 Washington Mardi Gras Posted: Jan 23, 2010 04:17 PM PST Here at the Washington Mardi Gras celebration, one of the many objectives is enjoying the company of friends and colleagues from throughout the state. But one of the most crucial aspects of the annual DC Carnival celebration is strictly business. Each year, executives representing major Louisiana firms network with elected officials, civic leaders, and political activists throughout the state on two major issues: determining the leadership of Louisiana through the coming years, and maximizing business opportunities for companies statewide. Much of that networking takes place at an annual business gathering in DC known as the Economic Development Luncheon. The 2010 event, however, turned out to be somewhat surprising for many in attendance. The theme of the 62ND annual Washington Mardi Gras Ball is "Energy-Louisiana Style." That's why Louisiana's business leaders in attendance were looking forward to hearing from the luncheon's keynote speaker Matthew Simmons, chairman emeritus of Simmons and Company, an investment banking firm for the nation's energy industry. But when a technical snafu prevented Simmons from presenting his original Power Point presentation detailing the history and future of Louisiana's energy industry, many in the audience, including executives of the nation's leading oil and gas corporations, were taken aback when Simmons decided to call up his favorite "go-to" topic, wind energy in the state of Maine, and why he feels that windmills may one day replace oil derricks and natural gas platforms in the Gulf of Mexico as the supplier of our nation's energy needs. For a state that boasts the fact that more than one third of the nation's energy supply flows through its land on a daily basis, it seemed a somewhat ambitious goal to suggest that our nation's future energy needs could be met by wind technology, especially since the energy resources of the Evansville Shale discovery in North Louisiana and the massive deepwater Tiber Prospect in the Gulf of Mexico are only now beginning to tap into their potential. Many who have journeyed here to the nation's capital feel that liquefied natural gas and compressed natural gas are the "green" fuels of the future, and that Louisiana's rich history of entrepreneurship will once again provide the infrastructure to develop these energy sources as a supplement to oil and gas, to meet the energy needs of millions of Americans. "We need to eventually do it all, " said Bill Fenstermaker, of C.H. Fenstermaker and also this year's Washington Mardi Gras King, "but it won't happen tomorrow. Matthew (Simmons) is a well-respected, intelligent industry consultant, he didn't have a chance to tell his whole story." Senator Mary Landrieu told industry leaders they should not fear the energy policies of the Obama Administration. "We do have friends here and we need to nurture those friendships to further the policies important to this industry and our state," she told the crowd when handed the microphone from the floor of the gathering. Senator David Vitter was critical of any efforts to thwart drilling and exploration. "We must work toward pro-production, pro-exploration industry initiatives that will create jobs for our state." klfy.com