Energy Group Names Ryan to Leadership Council

WASHINGTON – Former U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan has joined the leadership council of Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future, the group said Thursday.

The organization aims to inform the public and policymakers about why natural gas is best partnered with renewable power sources to accelerate the clean energy transition, according to a news release announcing the appointment.

Ryan, a Trumbull County Democrat who concluded 20 years in the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this month, will serve alongside former U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., as former U.S. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-Minn., transitions to a new role as director of the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics.

“The events of the last year show we can no longer sit on the sidelines while countries like Russia seek to weaponize energy, coerce and threaten our allies and jeopardize global security,” Ryan said in the release. “American natural gas is the answer to this threat. Today it is helping to stabilize our allies and maintain freedom across the globe.

“Expanding our U.S. natural gas infrastructure meets our energy goals now and allows us to adapt to zero carbon fuels of the future like hydrogen that drive carbon emissions down,” he continued. “Further, the working-class people who built the energy systems we rely on in this country today are going to be the same people who build the next generation of energy – natural gas will be a huge part of that.” 

The importance of natural gas is front and center on the world stage as coal use is ramping up in Europe and across the globe, according to the organization. China plans to boost coal production through 2025, threatening climate goals worldwide. China burns more coal than the rest of the world combined, producing nearly a third of the world’s annual carbon emissions. 

“Tim Ryan served with distinction in the U.S. Congress for two decades, fighting for working-class Americans and economic prosperity for all,” Landrieu said. “He understands how vital natural gas and its infrastructure are to meeting our long-term energy and climate goals. We are at a critical reflection point as we witness in real-time the value that natural gas brings to reliability, affordability and keeping carbon emissions low around the world.”

Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.