Pickens Plan District Group OK-05

Comment

Comment by Kevin Lienhard on March 4, 2009 at 8:26am

I want to open by saying what a great concept this is. And I also want to be candid about some things. We all know that conversation opens up the mind for new and innovative ideas, which is the best way to see how things might work. But correct me if I am wrong, I do not see an actual strategy forming from this. I know that T. Boone Pickens has a plan/dream of which he, himself is acting on. But to truly achieve from this concept there needs to be short term goals set. Goals that can be performed by anyone immediately. That will get things started. I, like many others, do not know what it is needed to go out there and do my part for the Picken’s Plan and think that it would be very beneficial to have some sort of outline as to what needs to be done. Keeping a list of thing achieved, and a list of things to achieve, and how they correlate to each other chronologically.

In my opinion we need to: (by State/Area)

First of all break the Picken’s Plan down into different forms of energy, and then see how the Picken’s Plan will work in these areas . (some examples)
a. Fuels for vehicles
1. Natural gas vehicles
2. Bio-Fuels
3. Hybrids
4. Electric
b. Wind energy
1. Programs by State
c. Solar energy
1. Programs by State

Second, identify a “to do list” for each form of energy on what is actually needed to make these sustainable, and how to take action.

Third, outline the personal capabilities needed to achieve each goal or task, (this way people can identify better how they can provide help), and allow people to commit to the task by asking for volunteers, or by voting on the best qualified person for the task.

Last, but not least, there needs to be an area on the Picken’s Plan website showing this information broken down by area. Possibly a map of the U.S. having each map indicating each specific form of energy, (wind, solar, fuels) . Then, all one would have to do is click on the map and see what it is that is needed and what it is that has been accomplished.

To me this would allow for action as well as words. This is such an important topic in these economic times, and could be a great way to take responsibility on a local level. We cannot wait for our politicians to take action, it is up to US. Thank you.

Comment by Geoff Bailey on March 4, 2009 at 7:39am

Michael/Lorrie,

What a great way to get new folks!

Keep up the hard work!

Geoff

Comment by Michael Rainbolt on March 3, 2009 at 7:44pm

Hello District 5, I wanted to share an idea for recruiting with all of you today. Lorrie Lee and myself were able to round up 14 new district 5 recruits during the lunch hour. We would like to hear from everybody who is a member of a community organization, ie. Kiwanas, Rotary, Lions, Shriner, Mason's, etc. Let us know and we will set up a time to come speak to your club or give you the tools to do it yourself, either way it will be a tremendous success, so let us know who you are and the club you are in.

Comment by Ben on March 1, 2009 at 7:35am

My wife wrote that story, we were really excited to hear about that.

Comment by Lorrie Lee on March 1, 2009 at 7:18am

Exciting Stuff! Dell, right here in OKC, is going to power their campus solely with wind! Take a look at this:
http://www.news9.com/global/story.asp?s=9896507

Comment by Bob Powell on February 13, 2009 at 6:20am

Here is some more on Utahs CNG plans

Utah: I-15 to be natural gas refueling corridorFebruary 13, 2009 8:28 AM ET advertisement

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All Associated Press newsSALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Questar Gas plans to beef up the compressed-gas refueling network along Interstate 15 from Salt Lake City to St. George.

Gov. Jon Huntsman made the announcement Thursday at a Sinclair station in Orem that sells compressed natural gas.

"If we are to provide energy security for our country and cleaner air for our children, we must first take steps in providing broad access to this clean, affordable, locally produced fuel," Huntsman said in a statement.

Officials expect economic stimulus funding from Congress will be available to add two stations to a 25-station network along I-15.

The existing stations were largely built on government funding to begin with.

Questar also plans to upgrade heavily used stations along the Wasatch Front, and with those improvements, pump capacity for the entire I-15 corridor will increase by nearly half, said Ron Jibson, president and chief executive of Questar Gas.

Compressed natural-gas pumps and dispensers will be added at gasoline stations along I-15 in Beaver and Washington counties, where coverage for thousands of natural-gas vehicles registered in Utah is sparse. The utility typically leases the equipment to station owners, who make some money on sales.

The problem for many of Utah's compressed-gas stations is that overworked compressors or pumps can't maintain enough pressure to fill motorists' tanks completely, or even add to the compressed gas inside their tanks.

Jibson said Questar would install larger compressor pumps at heavily used CNG stations at an Ogden Chevron station, a Woods Cross Phillips 66 station and an Orem Sinclair station. Another upgrade at a Sandy station was already in the works and is expected to be completed within weeks.

Utah has the country's cheapest rate for compressed gas, according to the Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition. For 88 cents, motorists get the energy equivalent of a gallon of gasoline.

The Utah Public Service Commission has reversed an order that would have brought Questar's compressed-gas prices up to market levels. That could have increased the price threefold. The commission dropped the plan under protest, saying it was allowing motorists to benefit from a special arrangement that gives Utah households low rates for natural gas.

The cheap rates stem from a court ruling more than three decades ago, when Questar was forced to sell gas from its Wyoming fields at no more than the cost of production to its Utah customers, who helped pay for the drilling. They get about half of their heating gas through this arrangement, which buffers them from higher market prices.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Comment by Lorrie Lee on February 12, 2009 at 7:13pm

Excellent-thanks for sharing that letter, Bob!

Comment by Bob Powell on February 12, 2009 at 11:29am

Please read the remarks from Questar CEO Keith Rattie delevered at the 2008 Earnings release this morning.

Questar Corporation
Fourth-Quarter 2008 Teleconference as delivered
Feb 12, 2009
Read remarks from Steve Parks, senior vice president and chief financial officer.
Read remarks from Keith Rattie, Chairman, President and CEO

Turning to our utility business, some of you may have read that Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. in
his State of the State Address two weeks ago proposed a partnership with our utility Questar Gas
to build a “natural gas corridor” comprised of natural gas filling stations along major interstate
highways in our state. Our utility team’s going to do its part to turn the governor’s vision into
reality - and we hope a blueprint for the rest of the country. Gov. Huntsman understands that this
country is swimming in natural gas. Indeed, the story of the year in U.S. energy in 2008 may be
the amazing breakthrough in the exploitation of the massive amounts of natural gas in place in
shale formations across the country. Simply put: the paradigm for U.S. energy policy has been
turned on its head. Gov. Huntsman has joined others in calling for the substitution of natural gas
produced in America for gasoline refined from foreign oil. But it shouldn’t stop there. After
years of focusing on supply, it’s time for the natural gas industry to turn its attention to
marketing and the demand side, specifically, the electric power-generation market. Question:
how many of the 535 people that we elect and send to Congress know that 40% of America’s
nearly 1 million megawatts of existing, installed electric power generation capacity is built to run
on natural gas? That’s a whopping 30% more than the total U.S. installed coal-fired capacity. But
incredibly, the average utilization of America’s existing gas-fired power plants is only 25%,
versus 75% for coal? The implications here are profound. Just a mere 10% increase in average
utilization of our existing gas-fired power plants - from 25% to just 35% - would increase U.S.
electricity supply by the equivalent of 40-50 base-load coal or nuclear plants – at an incremental
cost that’s a fraction of the all-in cost of new coal, nuclear or wind-power plants. What’s more,
over half of the nearly 400,000 MW of installed gas-fired capacity has been built since 1995,
whereas most of this country’s coal and nuclear plants are 40-50 years old. But you wouldn’t
know that from what you hear from policy makers in Washington, nor from what you read in the
paper or hear on TV. The public discourse on energy shows a bias for massive new spending on
so called “clean” coal, nuclear and wind power, while a much lower-cost and environmentally
sound alternative - greater use of domestic natural gas in our existing gas-fired power plants –
rarely gets mentioned. That’s in part the perverse consequence of both misaligned incentives for
regulated electric utilities, and unfounded fears that America is running out of natural gas. With
U.S. natural gas supply clearly set to grow, the natural gas industry needs to get its act together.
We need to educate the public and policy makers – and we need protect and grow all markets for
our clean, abundant, affordable and American-made product.
In summary, 2009 shapes up to be a very tough year for the U.S. economy, the natural gas
industry, and thus for Questar. We’ve battened down the hatches – we’re weathering the storm.
Markets will improve – they always do. And when they do, we think we’ll be well positioned for
the recovery.

Comment by Geoff Bailey on January 26, 2009 at 10:13pm

Evening,

I just wanted to remind everyone about Boone’s call to arms. He has asked each member of the army to call our member of Congress and ask them to support the alternative energy components of the stimulus plan.

Here are some helpful talking points:

Urge them to tell House Leadership that their constituents support the wind energy elements included in the Stimulus Bill which will build upon 2008's successes in the wind energy sector:

o Extension of the Production Tax Credit

o Implementation of a renewable infrastructure loan program

• We hope they're willing to doing more on the natural gas side and provide the incentives that will greatly expand the use of domestic natural gas as a vehicle fuel in America. Expanded use of Natural Gas Vehicles (NGVs) will help wean us off of foreign oil and create new American jobs. These incentives include:

o Increasing the vehicle tax credit to make natural gas trucks more accessible for heavy and medium duty truck operators

o Extending the fuel tax credit

• The Pickens Plan works best as a whole plan—wind and natural gas—and we hope Members of Congress will support that. The Stimulus Bill is a strong start but there's more we can—and should—do.

When you've made your call, please post a response to this discussion so I can keep track of how many calls have been made for each district!

Boone is counting on us. You can find the numbers to your elected officials below. Making a call is really quick, easy and satisfying. Make your calls today so I can report your hard work to Boone!

Congresswoman Mary Fallin (202) 225-2132

Senator Tom Coburn (202) 224-5754
Senator James Inhofe (202) 224-4721

Geoff Bailey
Regional Leader
Geoffrey@pickensplan.com

Comment by Jason F. Hamilton on January 23, 2009 at 5:31pm

Go OK-05!

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