On November 5, U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm appeared from the U.N. climate conference in Glasgow (COP26) on Bloomberg Television program Bloomberg Surveillance, where co-anchor Tom Keene, after noting states are experiencing above average gas prices, asked the secretary: “What is the Granholm plan to increase oil production in America?”
Granholm’s initial reaction was amusement, responding to the suggestion that she has power over global markets as “hilarious.” Granholm then went on to explain the limited role the U.S. government has in setting the price of oil and why moving away from our oil dependency is ultimately the solution to volatile energy prices.
When pressed further on the issue by co-anchor Jonathon Ferro, Granholm debunked the notion that oil companies operating in the U.S. are being restricted from producing, noting that “there are 23 million acres of public lands — that includes offshore and onshore — where there are leases that are not being used right now by oil and gas companies. Over 7,000 leases have been issued, and the oil and gas companies are not using them. They’re stockpiling these leases. Why is that?”
Following the interview, Javier Blas, chief energy correspondent at Bloomberg News, tweeted a 40-second clip of the nearly 7 minute exchange between Granholm and the hosts that captures only Granholm’s initial reaction without providing the substantive portion of her response.