Quotable: “Chris Wright is a scientist who has dedicated his life to the study and use of energy. He believes in science and supports the research that will deliver the affordable, reliable, and clean energy” that will lower costs and make the country more secure, Colorado Sen. John Hickenlooper said, as reported by the Associated Press. “While we don’t always agree, we will work together because none of us have four years to wait to act.”
Veteran journalist and commentator Llewellyn King wrote in a January 27 Forbes opinion piece, “The [energy] secretary is de facto America’s chief scientist and controls the DOE’s 17 national laboratories, a research establishment that is the envy of the world.”
“Note to Wright: Mr. Secretary, very soon you will find the labs are your greatest asset. . . . So long as you defend them from predators in Congress and elsewhere in the administration, who would cut their funding or limit the scope of their activities,” King added.
A closer look: Wright studied mechanical and electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. On his LinkedIn profile, Wright describes himself as a “tech nerd turned entrepreneur.”
“I’m all in on all energy from my start in nuclear, solar, and geothermal to my current efforts in oil and gas and next generation geothermal. I don’t care where energy comes, as long as it is secure, reliable, affordable and betters human lives,” his account shares.
Wright started Pinnacle Technologies in 1992 to support the launch of commercial shale gas production, but he left his CEO position at Pinnacle in 2006 to become the chair of Stroud Energy, a shale gas producer.
In 2010, he founded Liberty Resources, an exploration and production company focused on the Bakken oil fields of North Dakota and Montana. He also founded Liberty Midstream Solutions, a provider of midstream services for emerging oil and gas resources.
Wright has received some heat for his role as the CEO of a fracking company and past comments downplaying the impacts of climate change, but his supporters have also pointed out his support for other energy technologies like nuclear, The Hill reported.
During his January 15 hearing, Wright said, “I’ve studied and followed the data and the evolution of climate change for at least 20 years now. It is a global issue. It is a real issue. It’s a challenging issue, and the solution to climate change is to evolve our energy system.”
