American Oil and Gas Reporter - November 2022 - 25

Leading Bank Executive
Urges Country To Steer Clear
Of The Road To Perdition
Jamie Dimon, the chairman and chief executive officer of
America's largest bank, JPMorgan Chase, advocates for U.S.
oil and natural gas producers to be incentivized to produce as
much energy as possible. Speaking to a CNBC reporter at an
event in London, Dimon made the case that U.S. leaders should
have encouraged more domestic production some time ago.
" In my view, America should have been pumping more oil
and gas and it should have been supported, " he remarked.
" America needs to play a real leadership role. America is the
swing producer, not Saudi Arabia. We should have gotten that
right, starting in March. "
At current rates, the world is not producing enough oil and
natural gas to reduce dependence on higher-emitting sources of
energy and meet global energy transition goals, Dimon added.
Simultaneously, current rates of production and stockpiles for
oil and natural gas present a real threat for global energy
security. According to Dimon, these factors make increased
U.S. production a critical priority.
" I would put it in the critical category, " he characterized.
" This should be treated almost as a matter of war at this point,
nothing short of that. "
This was not the first time Dimon emphasized the urgent
need to produce more U.S. oil and natural gas. During a
September congressional hearing, Representative Rashida Tlaib,
D-Mi., argued that investors must stop financing fossil fuel
projects to hit net-zero targets. When Tlaib asked Dimon if JPMorgan
had a policy to prohibit investment in new oil and
natural gas projects, Dimon's reply was blunt: " Absolutely not,
and that would be the road to hell for America. "
In fact, Bloomberg reports that multiple large banks-including
JPMorgan, Bank of America, and Morgan Stanley-that joined
the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero, a group of roughly
500 financial sector entities that publicly committed their banks
to reach net-zero carbon emissions by mid-century ahead of the
U.N. Climate Change Conference in 2021, have quietly backed
away from that commitment.
Dimon's view that it is critical for U.S. oil and gas companies
to address the energy crisis by increasing production does not
appear to be a high priority for the Biden administration, despite
its calls for producers to do precisely that. Although encouraging
energy production in federal jurisdictions would present one
accessible lever for increasing energy supply, the administration
has dragged its feet on allowing leasing on federal lands and
delayed the release of the new five-year plan for oil and gas
leasing in federal waters. Comments IPAA submitted in October
on the proposed plan, which appear on our website, are well
worth a look.
While the Biden administration has voluntarily erected such
barriers, it also has released unprecedented amounts of oil from
the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, leaving the country vulnerable
to price shocks and supply disruptions from natural disasters.
In mid-October, the White House announced it would
" When Tlaib asked Dimon if JPMorgan
had a policy to prohibit investment in new oil
and natural gas projects, Dimon's reply was
blunt: 'Absolutely not, and that would be the
road to hell for America.'
"
release 15 million barrels of oil from the SPR, completing what
it calls a " historic 180-million-barrel drawdown. " The White
House also said, " The president is also calling on the U.S. Department
of Energy to be ready to move forward with additional
significant SPR sales this winter if needed due to Russian or
other actions disrupting global markets. " It also is considering a
refined products export ban, which would further reduce domestic
capacity and increase fuel prices both at home and abroad.
The bottom line: JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon understands
that it's not sensible to ask energy companies to produce more
and then follow that request with policies that discourage investment
in American oil and gas production. The Federal
Reserve Bank of Dallas' third quarter survey shows the domestic
oil and natural gas industry is resilient. Even as they face
regulatory and supply chain issues, companies continue to
expand production, but not to the extent they would if energy
policy was sound.
The United States has the tools to lead as the global swing
producer, but the country's oil and natural gas industry cannot
reach its full potential unless the Biden administration enacts
logical, consistent and pro-energy policies.
❒
JEFF ESHELMAN is president
and chief executive officer of the Independent
Petroleum Association
of America and the founder/executive
vice president of Energy in
Depth. Along with more than two
decades at IPAA, he previously
worked at the Defense Logistics
Agency, the White House Office of
National Drug Control Policy and
three public affairs firms.
NOVEMBER 2022 25
American Oil and Gas Reporter - November 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Oil and Gas Reporter - November 2022
