Academics & Research News

Series brings energy independence to light

The Energy Symposium Series: Critical Issues in Energy begins this year in the University Center Theater on Tuesday, Sept. 30 at 5:30 p.m. UH Energy will take on top issues in the industry in a series of four moderated discussions, each featuring speakers considered experts in their respective topics.

Students who attend this Tuesday will have the opportunity to hear a debate about Energy Independence. Ramanan Krishnamoorti, chief energy officer at UH Energy, hopes to help students answer the questions of whether energy independence is good for the United States and whether the country can afford it.

“The goal for the series is to educate our students, our alumni, our faculty, our staff about energy-related issues and have a thorough discussion on topics that are of importance,” Krishnamoorti said.

This year’s first speakers are Edward Chow, a senior fellow in the Energy and National Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies; Ed Hirs, managing director of Hillhouse Resources, LLC and an energy economist at UH; and Jane Kleeb, founder and executive director of Bold Nebraska. All three are nationally recognized experts on the topic of energy independence, and hope to bring their knowledge to students.

“The ability to be able to critically analyze and understand an industry and market is one of the things that the symposium brings to UH and UH students,” Hirs said

Concern about energy independence can be traced back to 1973 oil crisis, where the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries declared that oil exports would be suspended for nations that were considered to be allies to Israel. Since then, questions of if the United States should become energy independent have been debated.

“Think about the U.S. ever since 1973. Every single president has said we need to be energy independent, and the subtext has been that we should not be depending on Arab oil… and not to be swayed by international efforts, to be bullied,” Krishnamoorti said.

Hirs said he hopes the misinformation around energy independence will be cut out for students.

“The most important thing students can gain from attending these symposiums will be the ability to critically review and analyze and determine what the myths are and what the realities are,” Hirs said. “There is a lot of posturing, a lot of hyperbole, and a lot of substance, and all three do not go together in the same sentence, usually, when people are talking about energy policy and energy economics.”

For more information, please contact UH Energy at [email protected] or call 713-743-6100.

[email protected]

Leave a Comment