Adam Sieminski, US EIA Administrator, on Future Trends in Energy (7/5/16)

Global energy markets are in the midst of a historic transition, from the Paris climate agreement and rapidly falling renewable energy costs to the collapse of oil prices and the US shale boom. The changing dynamics highlight why collecting and analyzing the fundamentals of the global energy market is critical for developing sound energy and economic policy. This task has only become more difficult with the pace of technological change in the energy sector, growing climate policy efforts, and the shifting dynamics of geopolitics.
 
On this episode of Columbia Energy Exchange, host Jason Bordoff sits down with Adam Sieminski, Administrator of the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), to discuss future trends in energy and the way EIA collects and analyzes data. Among the topics they discussed:

1. What will oil and gas production and price volatility look like in the short- and medium-term? What is the role of the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve in terms of energy security concerns in the oil market today?
2. Why hasn't the US experienced a significant economic benefit from low oil prices?
3. Has the alleged “golden age of gas” been stalled and does it make sense to consider natural gas as a bridge toward a cleaner energy system?
4. How does EIA incorporate technological innovation and changing cost structures in its projections?
5. How important is policy – e.g. the Clean Power Plan — to the outlook of the US energy mix compared to market fundamentals?
6. What are the key highlights of EIA’s International Energy Outlook 2016?
7. And many more.

 

This podcast was originally recorded on June 9, 2016.