In a recent op-ed for the Dallas Morning News, Strauss Center Distinguished Scholar and UT Professor Michael Webber discussed the rising competition between Texas and Saudi Arabia for oil market dominance. In the piece, UT energy experts: A cold war brews between Saudi Arabia and Texas, Webber and co-author Isaac Barchas explain that hydraulic fracturing has enabled Texas to compete with Saudi Arabia in oil production, putting the former world leader in a precarious position.
According to Webber, hydraulic fracturing is the “most important technological revolution on the planet in the last 20 years.” Increased oil and gas production from hydraulic fracturing has stimulated the U.S. economy by creating jobs and lowering gas prices, and it is the latter that poses an existential threat to Saudi Arabia. The Saudis have responded by flooding the market in the hopes of putting competitors out of business and driving Wall Street returns to zero.
Given declining oil prices, Webber argues that “we’re in the middle of a market war” where the economic and geopolitical stakes are high. According to Webber, the U.S. must continue its commitment to research and development and focus on technology and innovation to avoid the mistakes of the past, secure U.S. oil production for the future, and ultimately win this war.
Strauss Center Distinguished Scholar Joshua Busby recently co-authored a piece in The National Interest titled “No Easy Solutions to Europe’s Geopolitical Trilemma.” Busy examines the mounting strategic pressures facing the European Union as it seeks defense, economic, and energy autonomy amid growing uncertainty from Russia, China, and the United States. “Thankfully for Europe, it is wealthy enough to continue restricting...
Are you a current student (undergraduate or graduate) at the University of Texas at Austin, the Colorado School of Mines, or the U.S. Naval War College with an interest in critical minerals, national security, and the clean energy transition? You're eligible to write an essay of no more than 2,000 words on this topic for a $3,500 prize. The subject...
Dr. Joshua Busby, the former Senior Advisor for Climate at the U.S. Department of Defense and a Distinguished Scholar at the Strauss Center, recently spoke on The India Energy Hour Podcast, addressing questions regarding India’s energy security while phasing down inefficient coal power plants. “If the international community truly prioritizes a clean energy transition in the Global South, including but not limited to India,...