America’s
Energy Conference hosted by FIU and U.S. Southern Command
MIAMI
(July 13, 2006)— Florida International University’s
Applied Research Center, together with U.S. Southern Command, hosted America’s
Energy Conference, a first-time symposium focusing on energy issues
of critical importance to our region and the Western Hemisphere. The event
was held at the FIU University Park Campus, Thursday July 13, 2006. The primary
objective of the America’s Energy Conference was to bring
together senior U.S. Government Officials, industry experts from private
companies, academia, consulting groups and energy associations; thus fostering
an in-depth discussion about energy policy, technology, as well as providing
a vehicle for a targeted survey of key energy trends and areas of particular
strategic concern. The format of the symposium was designed to promote a
free-flowing exchange of ideas through individual presentations and through
roundtable discussion sessions.
The America’s Energy Conference,
first in a series of workshops, was developed with the
idea of creating a forum for academia, the federal government
and the private sector to interact and better assess, evaluate
and respond to energy developments in the region in light
of increasingly complex political, economical and social
phenomena. Attending the event were: Commander for U.S.
Southern Command, General John Craddock; FIU Provost and
Chief Academic Officer, Ronald Berkman; David Pumphrey,
U.S. Department of Energy Deputy Assistant Secretary for
the Office of Policy and International Affairs; Patrick
Duddy, U.S. Department of State Deputy Assistant Secretary
for Western Hemisphere Affairs; as well as distinguished
guests from Exxon Mobil, Chevron, PFC Energy among others.
General John Craddock opened the event highlighting the
importance of energy developments for the United States
and its partners in the Western Hemisphere (Canada, Latin
America and the Caribbean). Elaborating on his long experience
interacting with the militaries of Latin America, Craddock
appropriately set the tone for the conference and commented: “Energy,
production, exploration and transport is pivotal to the
economic well-being of the region [Western Hemisphere]
and as a military commander; I foresee that given the uneven
global distribution and use patterns of energy, future
conflicts will be increasingly motivated by this critical
resource.”
General Craddock’s opening remarks were followed
by FIU Provost Ronald Berkman, who discussed the importance
of building a continuing partnership between business,
government and academia around energy issues. Berkman commented
that “innovative events such as the America’s
Energy Conference, which
address current public issues, underscore one of the core
educational missions of FIU because they uniquely allow
the opportunity to bring broad strategic thinking to the
policymaking and business levels.” Provost Berkman
also emphasized that “knowledge [in this case about
Western Hemisphere energy matters], which is the primary
business of a research university, is for the most part
already available. There is less need for creation of new
knowledge,” explained
Berkman. “[It is] more important to connect existing
pools of energy knowledge in order to solve current problems
throughout the Hemisphere.”
David Pumphrey, representing
the policy arm of the Department of Energy, gave an overview
of the current global energy situation and discussed the
primary short and long-term energy concerns. Pumphrey focused
on responses to international oil and natural gas supply
disruptions: “maintaining a national strategic
oil reserve, coordinating the international stockpiling
of oil and gas, and the protection of related infrastructure
are our priorities.” Long-term
issues discussed by Pumphrey included over-dependence on
a particular energy source or supplier nation. Pumphrey
concluded that diversification, improved technologies and
promoting a global secure investment climate were among
the strategies favored by the federal government to address
long term energy concerns.
The second presenter, Patrick Duddy, provided an overview
of current U.S. foreign policy objectives towards Latin
America, discussed the progress made in terms of democratic
transformations in the region, and highlighted the increasing
economic lag of the region vis-à-vis other (specifically
Asia and Eastern Europe) developing areas of the world.
Duddy elaborated on the causes of Latin America’s
disenchantment with market reforms, the return of populist
governments and specifically addressed the case of Bolivia,
an important producer of natural gas in the region. Duddy
discussed in detail the impact of recent political developments
in Bolivia that will undoubtedly affect energy markets
and economic growth around the region.
The last presenter,
Erik Kreil, International Analyst from the U.S. Energy
Information Administration (EIA) provided a wealth of statistical
data on Western Hemisphere countries’ energy potential,
current production, consumption and oil and gas exports
to the U.S. Kreil emphasized the importance of the region
for current and future U.S. energy policy, given that it
provides about 50% of all U.S. imported oil.
The America’s
Energy Conference continued
with two roundtable discussion sessions. The first roundtable
provided the private sector’s
perspective on energy challenges and investment in the
region and included: Jesse Tyson, President ExxonMobil
Inter-Americas; Bill Irwin, Manager of international government
relations for Chevron and Roger Tissot, Director Latin
American country strategies group for PFC Energy. Dr. Edward
Glab of FIU served as panel moderator. The second roundtable
session, focusing on alternative approaches
to enhanced energy security, included: Bob Corbin, Manager
of natural gas regulatory activities for DOE; Matthew McManus,
Chief Division of Energy Producer Affairs at DOE in the
Meso-America Initiative; Dr. George Philippidis, Florida
International University’s Applied Research Center’s
(FIU-ARC) Alternative Fuels Division; and Bruce Averill,
Critical Infrastructure Protection at DOS. The roundtable
was moderated by Mr. Carlos Garibaldi, Managing Director
for Harrison Lovegrove & Co.
The keynote luncheon speech was presented by Mr. Luis Giusti,
Senior Advisor for the Center for Strategic International
Studies in Washington D.C. and former Chairman and CEO
of Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA). Mr. Giusti, an
expert in the international oil and gas sector, highlighted
increased energy demand pressures from China and India,
the renewed role of state-owned oil and gas companies in
Latin America, changing market conditions, and the implications
of Venezuela’s political dynamics on regional energy
developments.
In his closing remarks for the event, General
Craddock pledged support for subsequent workshops
that specifically target areas of concern to policy makers
and private industry alike. “This conference
was a necessary first step”.
For photos and /or additional information:
Contact:
Adrienne Denaro
Communications Manager
FIU Applied Research Center
Ph: 305-348-1698 / Fax: 305-348-1852 |
