Chevron Chief Executive Mike Wirth said a friendlier policy environment for the U.S. energy industry would help domestic producers pump more at home.
We have the ability to make the U.S. an energy powerhouse, he said in a statement on Fox News' special report. But it must be done with a supportive policy, with an environment that encourages investment. We've seen mixed signals here over the last few years, he said. Wirth said some modest but meaningful steps on permit reform for U.S. producers were included in the recent debt ceiling deal, and the industry hopes that's a sign of an intent on the part of the Biden administration and Congress to work further towards energy policy that balances economic prosperity, energy security and environmental protection but doesn't over-focus on any of those. The CEO pushed back against President Biden's criticisms of U.S. energy producers making record profits last year, and the president's claims that American oil companies could be drilling more using existing leases.
The oil sector lost money when the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic caused demand to plummet, and we've come out of COVID we've been on the other side of it, said Wirth. The numbers can be large, but they can go in both directions and they can go there quickly, he said. We're not sitting on permits that we're not using, he said. Wirth made clear in his speech that the U.S. is on track to achieve record levels of production this year, and he re-upped his call for the administration to tone down its hostilities toward oil companies.
We'd like to see a more collaborative and open dialogue with the administration, said Bret Baier, the president's spokeswoman. Collectively, we can protect the environment, address climate change, and create energy security.