The U.S. Senate has officially confirmed Chris Wright, a prominent fracking executive, to become the country’s new Energy Secretary. The confirmation vote on Monday passed with a majority of 59 in favor and 38 against. Seven Democrats and one Independent, who caucuses with Democrats, crossed party lines to support the nomination.
Wright, 60, who has served as the CEO of Liberty Energy since 2011, will step down from his role at the company once he is confirmed. Known for his straightforward stance on climate change, Wright has previously expressed his belief in human-caused climate change but has downplayed its immediate threats, describing the risks as “distant and uncertain.” Wright has also voiced skepticism about governmental policies aimed at combating climate change, stating that top-down solutions are destined to fail.
As Energy Secretary, Wright will oversee an agency with an annual budget of approximately $50 billion. A substantial portion of this budget is allocated to maintaining the country’s nuclear weapons stockpile. He will also manage 17 national laboratories under the department, which engage in critical research, including fusion energy and supercomputing technologies. During his confirmation hearing, Wright outlined his first priority as expanding domestic energy production, with a particular focus on liquefied natural gas (LNG) and nuclear energy. The U.S. became the world’s leading LNG exporter in 2023, and Wright has indicated that shipments could double by the end of the decade.
Wright’s confirmation signals a shift in U.S. energy policy, with expectations that he will collaborate closely with other key officials, including Environmental Protection Agency head Lee Zeldin, to scale back some of the climate-focused policies implemented under President Joe Biden’s administration. Wright and Zeldin are both expected to advocate for increased fossil fuel infrastructure, such as natural gas pipelines and power plants.
One of Wright’s most controversial positions centers around his 2023 remarks about wildfires in Los Angeles. Despite the devastation caused by the fires, Wright stated that the media coverage was “just hype” used to justify climate change policies. He is also set to play a significant role in the new National Energy Dominance Council, led by former North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, which aims to maximize the output of oil and gas in the U.S., even though the country already holds the title of the largest producer of both.
Another responsibility for Wright will be overseeing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), the world’s largest stockpile of crude oil. President Biden sold more than 180 million barrels of oil from the SPR in 2022 to counteract rising gasoline prices caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The reserve is currently at its lowest level in four decades, and Wright has pledged to fill it back up, although this will require Congress to allocate funds and may result in higher oil prices.
Wright has also expressed support for expanding geothermal power, a renewable energy source that taps into heat from below the Earth’s surface. However, he acknowledges that greater access to power transmission lines is necessary for the success of geothermal projects. Currently, Congress has yet to pass legislation to fund new transmission lines, which are essential for the growth of geothermal and other renewable energy projects. Additionally, Wright is likely to help spearhead efforts to build a domestic uranium fuel supply chain following President Biden’s recent ban on uranium imports from Russia.
Despite his controversial views, Wright’s confirmation positions him at the forefront of shaping U.S. energy policy, with a focus on increasing fossil fuel production while supporting the growth of nuclear and geothermal energy.
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