Natural gas is key to Wisconsin’s energy security | Peter Barca
This op-ed, penned by our Wisconsin State Chairman, Peter Barca, former Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Revenue, was originally published in the Wisconsin State Journal.
The conflict in Iran has wide-ranging consequences for our energy markets. That is inescapable. If you aren’t hearing it on the news, you’re seeing it in the prices at your local Kwik Trip or your electricity bill.
But one thing that has been laid bare by blockading the world’s most energy-rich region: Energy security is national security, and if the cost and ready availability of power wasn’t front of mind before, it certainly is now.
The blockade in Iran is causing higher prices and inflationary pressures for Wisconsin families — and the longer it goes on, the longer the impacts will stay. But this supply squeeze has also shown that countries with strong and diverse domestic supplies of energy, particularly natural gas, have been able to better insulate everyday consumers from that global turmoil. It hasn’t completely stopped the impact — anyone who handles the checkbook in their family can tell you that — but it has made a tangible difference in both price shocks and reliability.
Wisconsin is already at a pivotal moment in its energy story. Much of the Midwest is facing a stark problem of growing demand and retiring supply. Old, expensive coal plants are reaching the end of their life just as manufacturing, artificial intelligence and electrification of our transportation and industry are surging. Add in the disruption of a tangled global energy supply chain, and this is more than just tomorrow’s problem.
To meet this moment, we need around-the-clock energy supply, and we need to build it here. The International Energy Agency warned that energy security depends on a smart combination of renewables and dispatchable natural gas. A Midwest electric grid operator recently testified to Congress that even as we are increasing our capacity, we are falling behind on reliable energy sources such as natural gas, which could lead to shortfalls during critical hours.
The bottom line: A firm supply of natural gas-powered energy is necessary to weather any storm, whether it’s halfway across the world or here in Wisconsin. Conflicts such as the one in Iran remind us that reliability is not a buzzword — it’s vital infrastructure like hospitals and emergency services. It’s the power in your home or your kid’s school.
If we do not act to shore up our system with new available, reliable and domestic sources, we could face the “energy triage” that is forcing many Asian countries to take drastic energy conservation measures.
A lot of bad news is out there now, but we have reason for optimism, too. A variety of energy projects, including natural gas, have been proposed or are under construction in Wisconsin. There’s broad support for building domestic power of all kinds and taking a commonsense approach that balances reducing emissions with preserving reliability and affordability. Gas emits far less than older technologies such as coal, satisfying both goals.
