The US is set to reduce its dependence on foreign sources of energy as it has produced more oil at home than it imported for the first time in nearly two decades, President Barack Obama said today.
“After years of talk about reducing our dependence on foreign oil, we are actually poised to control our own energy future,” Obama said in his weekly address to the nation.
“We produce more natural gas than anyone — and nearly everyone’s energy bill is lower because of it. And just this week, we learned that for the first time in nearly two decades, the USA now produces more of our own oil here at home than we buy from other countries,” he said.
“That’s a big deal. That’s a tremendous step towards American energy independence.”
Referring to his visit to the ArcelorMittal Steel plant in Cleveland this week, Obama said the one area where the US has made great progress is energy.
The US has invested in new home-grown technologies to reverse its dependence on foreign oil and double the generation of wind and solar power. “And today, we generate more renewable energy than ever — with tens of thousands of good, American jobs to show for it,” he said.
Obama said the US has reached this milestone not only because it is producing more energy but also because Americans are wasting less energy.
“And while our carbon emissions have been dropping, our economy has been growing. Our businesses have created 7.8 million new jobs in the past 44 months. It proves that the old argument that we can’t strengthen the economy and be good stewards of our planet at the same time is a false choice. We can do both. And we have to do both,” he said.