Railroad Commissioner Christi Craddick Tells NAPE “Education Is Key to World Energy Abundance”

HOUSTON – Today, Railroad Commissioner Christi Craddick encouraged attendees at the winter North American Prospect Expo (NAPE) meeting in Houston to proactively work together to educate the public about the importance of the current shale energy revolution. Craddick’s comments were made at the NAPE meeting, which this year has 16,000 investors from energy exploration and production sectors from across the globe.

“The booms and busts of oil and gas production are expected, but the industry’s recent innovations in shale development – the use of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling collectively – have immensely changed the conversation,” Craddick said.  “We have sustained growth. This technology has catapulted the world into this new age of energy abundance. Although it started in Texas, shale development is now pursued throughout the world.

“The question is not if this energy revolution continues—it must continue,” Craddick said. “It is a question of how to find the proper balance between the needs of public interests, while aiding the continuation of enormous growth in global energy supplies. A big piece to successfully bridging that gap is education.

“With this monumental development comes not only a regulatory responsibility, but the unspoken, unconditional duty of industry, policy makers and regulators to educate people about what is going on in their communities. We have worked hard to spread this message in Texas, but the effort does not stop there. We must all proactively work together to tell the story of the importance of this shale energy revolution to the world. With global awareness of the significance of this new age of energy development, the abundance of our energy resources is more certain.

“The American shale revolution has been driven by energy innovators who had the courage take the leap and invest in pioneering technologies,” Craddick said.  “America has blazed the trail for energy innovation; and now, the eyes of Texas, and the world, are upon us to ensure the safe, responsible, continued development of our precious resources.”

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Christi Craddick was elected statewide by the people of Texas in November 2012 to serve a six-year term as Texas Railroad Commissioner.  A native of Midland, Christi is an attorney specializing in oil and gas, water, tax issues, electric deregulation and environmental policy.