WASHINGTON (AP) — Fossil fuel executive Chris Wright, Donald Trump's choice for Energy secretary, is a strong supporter of oil and gas development, including fracking, a key pillar of the president-elect’s quest for U.S. “energy dominance” in the global market.
Wright has been one of the industry’s loudest voices against efforts to fight climate change, and he could give fossil fuels a boost, including quick action to end a year-long pause on natural gas export approvals by the Biden administration.
CEO of Denver-based Liberty Energy, he describes himself as “a tech nerd turned entrepreneur” and promotes the idea that more fossil fuel production can lift people out of poverty around the globe.
Here are some things to know about Wright.
Wright has been chairman and CEO of Liberty Energy since 2011 and has no experience in government.
Liberty is a major energy industry service provider, with a focus on technology. Wright, who grew up in Colorado, earned an undergraduate degree at MIT and did graduate work in electrical engineering at the University of California, Berkeley and MIT. In 1992, he founded Pinnacle Technologies, which helped launch commercial shale gas production through hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.
He later served as chairman of Stroud Energy, an early shale gas producer, before founding Liberty Resources in 2010.
Wright says on LinkedIn that he is “all-in on energy,″ from starting his career in nuclear, solar and geothermal energy to his current efforts in oil and gas and “next-generation” geothermal. “I don’t care where energy comes (from), as long as it is secure, reliable, affordable and betters human lives,″ he wrote.
If confirmed, Wright will join North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Trump’s choice to be interior secretary, as a key player on energy policy in a second Trump term. Wright will be a member of a new National Energy Council that Burgum will chair. The new panel will seek to establish U.S. “energy dominance” around the world, Trump said.
The energy council will include all executive branch agencies involved in energy permitting, production, generation, distribution, regulation and transportation, with a focus on “cutting red tape” and boosting domestic energy production, Trump said. The council’s mission represents a near-complete reversal from actions pursued by Democratic President Joe Biden, who has made fighting climate change a top priority.
Trump has pledged to rescind unspent funds in Biden’s 2022 climate law and is widely expected to curb or reverse Biden’s push for more electric vehicles and stricter regulation of carbon pollution from coal-fired power plants.
Wright has won support from influential conservatives, including oil and gas tycoon Harold Hamm.
Hamm, executive chairman of Oklahoma-based Continental Resources, a major shale oil company, is a longtime Trump supporter and adviser who played a key role on energy issues in Trump’s first term. Hamm helped organize an event at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in April where Trump reportedly asked industry leaders and lobbyists to donate $1 billion to Trump’s campaign, with the expectation that Trump would curtail environmental regulations if reelected.
Thomas Pyle, president of the American Energy Alliance, a conservative group that supports fossil fuels, called Wright “an excellent choice” for energy secretary. Pyle led Trump’s energy transition team in 2016.
Mike Sommers, president of the American Petroleum Institute, the oil and gas industry’s top lobbying group, also praised Wright, saying the group looks forward to working with him “to bolster American geopolitical strength" by lifting Biden's pause on LNG export permits and ensuring “open access" for American energy around the world.
Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming, the top Republican on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, called Wright an energy innovator who played a key role in America’s fracking boom.
Wright has frequently criticized what he calls a “top-down” approach to climate change by liberal and left-wing groups. He argues that the climate movement around the world is “collapsing under its own weight.”
Jackie Wong, senior vice president for climate and energy at the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group, called Wright “a champion of dirty fossil fuels” and said his nomination was “a disastrous mistake.”
“The Energy Department should be doing all it can to develop and expand the energy sources of the 21st century, not trying to promote the dirty fuels of the last century,” Wong said. “Given the devastating impacts of climate-fueled disasters, DOE’s core mission of researching and promoting cleaner energy solutions is more important now than ever.”
Lena Moffitt, executive director of Evergreen Action, another environmental group, said Wright has “shown that his loyalty lies with fossil fuel interests. Yet he would be tasked with overseeing billions in clean energy investments that are critical to lowering costs and creating jobs nationwide. This nomination is a clear indication that Trump is more interested in helping his political allies than tackling the real challenges facing everyday Americans.”