Egypt and Renewable Energy

David Kreutzer / February 01, 2011

Aiding and abetting the solar and wind energy industries in their continuing efforts to mislead the American people, Energy Secretary Steven Chu called for a shift to renewable energy to insulate us from petroleum price spikes. Recent events in Egypt are partially responsible for a recent jump in oil prices, but renewables are not the answer. A few facts will show why.

First, according the Obama Administration’s own Energy Information Administration, petroleum accounts for less than 1 percent of electricity production. Since wind and solar produce electricity and not transportation fuel, these renewables cannot replace anything more than a negligible fraction of domestic petroleum production. Wind and solar can replace only fuels like coal and gas, which we have in abundance in the U.S. (more…)