The National Petroleum Council

An Oil & Natural Gas Advisory Committee to the Secretary of Energy

MORE INFO Link to National Petroleum Council Web Site Read the July 2007 NPC report, Facing the Hard Truths About Energy

The National Petroleum Council was established by the Secretary of the Interior in 1946 at the request of President Harry S. Truman. In 1977, the U.S. Department of Energy was established and the Council's functions were transferred to the new Department.

The purpose of the Council is to advise the Secretary of Energy on matters related to oil and natural gas, or the oil and natural gas industries.

The Council is chartered by the Secretary of Energy, under the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972. The Council membership of approximately 175 persons is selected and appointed by the Secretary of Energy. Individual members serve without compensation as representatives of their industry or associated interests as a whole, not as representatives of their particular companies or affiliations.