President-elect Donald Trump has selected Chris Wright, the CEO of Liberty Energy, a Denver-based fracking company, as the next secretary of energy. This decision was announced in a statement released on Saturday. Wright will also be a member of the newly established National Energy Council, which will include all agencies involved in various aspects of energy production and regulation. North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Trump's pick for interior secretary, will serve as the chairman of this council.
In his statement, Trump praised Wright as a pioneer in the American Shale Revolution, which played a significant role in achieving energy independence for the United States and reshaping global energy markets and geopolitics.
Aside from his involvement in fracking oil and natural gas, Wright serves on the board of a modular nuclear reactor company and has shown interest in the potential of nuclear energy. This aligns with the Biden administration's focus on developing nuclear energy, as the Energy Department oversees initiatives related to nuclear security and stockpile maintenance.
Regarding climate change, Wright has acknowledged the connection between burning fossil fuels and climate change. However, he has expressed skepticism about the impact of climate change on extreme weather events. In public statements, Wright has emphasized the importance of fossil fuels in supporting economic development, particularly in lifting developing nations out of poverty.
In a 2023 interview, Wright emphasized the essential role of oil and gas in powering the world and dismissed calls for a rapid transition away from fossil fuels as unrealistic. He described the idea of transitioning off fossil fuels within a decade as an 'absurd time frame.'
