Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Oil Companies Loath to Follow Obama’s Green Lead

Published: April 7, 2009

The Obama administration wants to reduce oil consumption, increase renewable energy supplies and cut carbon dioxide emissions in the most ambitious transformation of energy policy in a generation.

David McNew/Getty Images

Royal Dutch Shell is freezing its investments in wind, solar and hydrogen power, and focusing its alternative energy efforts on biofuels. Above, a hydrogen fuel pump in Los Angeles

Most of the investments by oil companies go to traditional fossil-fuel resources, including carbon- intensive energy sources like tar sands, above, and natural gas from shale.

But the world’s oil giants are not convinced that it will work. Even as Washington goes into a frenzy over energy, many of the oil companies are staying on the sidelines, balking at investing in new technologies favored by the president, or even straying from commitments they had already made.

Royal Dutch Shell said last month that it would freeze its research and investments in wind, solar and hydrogen power, and focus its alternative energy efforts on biofuels. The company had already sold much of its solar business and pulled out of a project last year to build the largest offshore wind farm, near London.

ARTICLE CONTINUES AT THE NEWYORKTIMES.COM

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