Press Releases
Currently showing results related to Energy
Wyden, Merkley, Schrader Announce $4 Million Federal Grant to Wave Energy Test Facility off the Oregon Coast
PORTLAND, OR -- In a move that will further establish Oregon as a leader in alternative energy development, the Department of Energy has awarded a $4 million grant to create a world class, grid-connected ocean energy test facility off the Oregon Coast. The grant announced today by Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and Congressman Kurt Schrader was awarded to the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center (NNMREC), one of three DOE-sponsored ocean energy centers in the country. … Continue Reading
September 24, 2012
Wyden, Merkley bills block taxpayer money from aiding foreign companies that violate trade rules
Washington, D.C. - Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley have introduced two bills to prevent taxpayer money from aiding foreign companies that benefit from illegal trade practices, including many Chinese-manufactured solar panels. "China is enabling solar panels and wind energy property to be sold in the U.S. at below market value due to the illegal subsidies provided by China's government," Wyden said. "Taxpayer money should not be used to buy property that the Department of Commerce … Continue Reading
August 27, 2012
Senators Wyden, Murkowski tour array of Alaska energy sites
Washington, D.C. - U. S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), traveled to Alaska this week to visit a range of the state's energy resources, as part of an ongoing tour of energy-producing regions of the US. Senator Wyden made the trip at the invitation Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), the top-ranking Republican on the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Senator Wyden is poised to be the committee's top Democrat next year and currently chairs the Public Lands and Forests … Continue Reading
August 16, 2012
After Oil Refinery Fire, Wyden Sends Letters to FTC/EIA Seeking Extra Vigilance Against Gas Price Gouging
Washington, D.C. - With the effect on gas prices of last week's fire at the Chevron Oil refinery in California already being felt by Oregonians at the pump, U. S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) sent a pair of letters to the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission and the Administrator of the Energy Information Administration asking them to increase vigilance "to ensure that oil companies are not taking unfair advantage of the situation to jack up prices." A fire at Chevron's Richmond, Calif. oil … Continue Reading
August 02, 2012
Wyden Amendment Extends Tax Credit for Electric Motorcycle Purchases
Washington, D.C. - With the electric motorcycle industry poised to create thousands of American jobs over the next five years, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) was able to successfully extend and streamline the tax credit for the purchase of new electric motorcycles as part of the tax extenders package being debated in the Senate Finance Committee. "Right now, companies like Brammo in Oregon are keeping the American electric vehicle industry on the cutting edge," Wyden said. "But without an … Continue Reading
April 16, 2012
After Tour of Fukushima Nuclear Power Station, Wyden Says Situation Worse than Reported
Washington, D.C. - After an onsite tour of what remains of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear facilities decimated by last year's earthquake and subsequent tsunami, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) a senior member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, sent a letter to Japanese Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki looking for ways to advance and support clean-up and recovery efforts. Wyden's principal concern is the relocation of spent fuel rods currently being stored in unsound … Continue Reading
March 30, 2012
Markey, Wyden to CFTC: Are Commodity Investment Funds Skewing Oil Market?
Washington, D.C. - Two Democratic lawmakers today asked the government agency tasked with regulating the nation's commodities markets -- which includes crude oil futures and other derivatives trading -- to investigate whether commodities index funds are artificially inflating the price of oil. The letter, written by Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), was sent to Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Gary Gensler. In their letter, the lawmakers express concerns … Continue Reading
March 15, 2012
Senators Seek Two-Year Extension of Wind-Energy Tax Credit
WASHINGTON - Senators Chuck Grassley, Mark Udall, Scott Brown, Tom Harkin, Dean Heller, Ron Wyden, and Michael Bennet today proposed a two-year extension of the wind energy production tax credit scheduled to expire at the end of the year. The bipartisan proposal would prevent a lapse in the credit. Without an extension, as many as 37,000 jobs nationwide could be lost. The senators hope to have the extension passed as quickly as possible in order to provide tax certainty for the renewable … Continue Reading
January 18, 2012
Wyden Statement on the Administration’s Disapproval of the Keystone XL Pipeline
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) issued the following statement in response to the Obama Administration's decision not to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline: "The Keystone Pipeline is an environmentally risky and economically dubious project that would have boosted the balance sheets of oil producers at the expense of American families. If the pipeline had been approved and Canadian tar sands oil producers had been able to sell their oil to customers throughout the world … Continue Reading
December 13, 2011
Wyden Sends Letter to EPA Seeking Better Rules for Small Boilers
Washington, D.C. - With the Environmental Protection Agency proposing new rules governing which fuels are burned in boilers throughout the country, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) has sent a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson calling on the agency to require additional disclosure of the fuels that are burned in smaller boilers, so that community members can know and weigh in on the types of fuels burned in small boilers in their neighborhoods. After a long process wherein Wyden urged … Continue Reading
November 10, 2011
Wyden, Collins, Bingaman Legislation Will Increase Investments in the Storage of Renewable Energy
Washington, D.C. - As the nation takes steps to improve energy efficiency and develop renewable resource technologies, not enough is being done to ensure that electricity infrastructure is being used efficiently. The focus on building transmission and generation capacity to meet peak demand for electricity means that consumers pay more while producers are forced to rely on less cost-efficient energy sources. U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Senate Energy … Continue Reading
August 03, 2011
Wyden Bill Gives States Latitude to Set Electricity Rates on Small-Scale Projects
Washington, D.C. - In an effort to create incentives for investment in small-scale renewable energy projects like solar panels on the roofs of homes and businesses, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) introduced legislation to give the states the ability to determine the price that public utilities can pay to purchase the electricity these projects sell back to the grid. "Right now, the federal government is controlling the rates that local utility companies can pay for the energy produced by … Continue Reading
July 20, 2011
SENATORS INTRODUCE BILL TO GIVE EPA ADEQUATE TIME TO IMPLEMENT BOILER MACT RULE
WASHINGTON, D.C.-U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine), Ron Wyden (D-Oregon), Lamar Alexander (R-Tennessee), Mary Landrieu (D-Louisiana), Mark Pryor (D-Arkansas), and Pat Toomey (R-Pennsylvania) today introduced bipartisan legislation that would allow the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the time it has said it needs to adequately consider new boiler MACT rules. In April 2010, pursuant to court orders, EPA first announced new Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) … Continue Reading
July 14, 2011
Merkley and Wyden Announce Approval of the West Butte Wind Energy Project
Washington, DC - Oregon Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced that the U.S. Department of Interior has given a green light for the West Butte Wind Project in Central Oregon. The wind farm will produce up to 104 megawatts of electricity for homes and businesses and create jobs now. "Clean renewable energy, like the electricity West Butte Wind Energy Project will produce, makes our air cleaner and creates jobs," said Merkley. "The approval will help put people back to work and … Continue Reading
July 14, 2011
Wyden, Stabenow Bill To Promote Alternative Fuels Passes Energy Committee
Washington, D.C. - In a victory for Americans hurt by the price of gasoline this summer, legislation to promote the implementation of viable alternatives to oil to meet transportation needs passed the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee today. Introduced by U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Debbie Stabenow (D- Mich.), the Alternative Fuels Vehicles Competitiveness and Security Act will increase energy security and reduce dependence on foreign oil by supporting the manufacturers of … Continue Reading
June 08, 2011
Geothermal Energy Bill To Help Legitimate Producers Develop Geothermal “Hot Spots” More Efficiently
Washington, D.C. - With one of the biggest barriers to geothermal energy production being the risky and inefficient process of searching for "hot spots" capable of producing recoverable energy, a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators have introduced legislation to make it easier for developers to lease federal land adjacent to proven geothermal "hot spots." Geothermal energy is a sustainable energy resource that captures natural heat from the Earth to create electricity. Sponsored by U.S. … Continue Reading
June 07, 2011
Bipartisan Senate Group Introduces Legislation to Help U.S. Soda Ash Producers Compete with Foreign Suppliers
Washington, D.C. - As foreign governments continue to provide unfair subsidies and benefits to give a leg up to their domestic producers of soda ash - a key industrial material in the manufacturing of glass and other products and one of the largest exports out of the Port of Portland - a bipartisan group of Senators have introduced legislation to maintain low Federal royalties on the mineral so that U.S. manufacturers can compete. The Soda Ash Competition Act - introduced by Senators Ron Wyden … Continue Reading
May 25, 2011
Wyden, Cantwell Call Out CFTC for Dragging Their Feet on Preventing Excessive Oil Speculation
Washington, D.C. - As gasoline continues to hover at $4 per gallon propelled by rampant speculation in the oil commodities market that now amounts to nearly 40 percent of all trades in crude oil futures markets, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) joined Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) on the Senate floor today to excoriate the Commodities Futures Trading Commission's (CFTC) decision not to take immediate action to impose position limits to curb excessive oil speculation. Speaking on the Senate … Continue Reading
May 17, 2011
Wyden, Stabenow Bill Uses Alternative Transportation Fuels to Reduce Dependence on Foreign Oil
Washington, D.C. - As the price of gas at the pump continues to drain Americans' wallets, U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Debbie Stabenow (D- Mich.) have introduced legislation to increase energy security and reduce dependence on foreign oil by integrating many types of cutting edge alternative fuel sources into our transportation infrastructure. Using a two pronged approach to increasing fuel options, the Alternative Fuels Vehicles Competitiveness and Security Act of 2011will expand … Continue Reading
May 11, 2011
17 Senators Call on Federal Regulators to Immediately Crack Down on Excessive Crude Oil Speculation
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) led a bipartisan group of 17 Senators in calling on federal regulators to expedite long-stalled rules to rein in excessive Wall Street speculation in West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures and other energy commodities. Numerous experts have concluded that excessive trading in oil futures is causing oil price volatility unrelated to supply-and-demand fundamentals, and contributing to rising gas prices. … Continue Reading
