U.S. says all nations should open markets [View All]

[Judi Lynn]

Feb. 14, 2007, 11:39PM
U.S. says all nations should open markets
Energy security will come through mutual interests, Bodman declares

By BRETT CLANTON
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman on Wednesday called for all nations to embrace a "new paradigm of energy security" that must include open markets for energy trading and investment.

"History has shown that an unfettered market is the most effective and efficient way to determine price and allocate resources based on supply and demand," he said in a speech at the Cambridge Energy Research Associates' annual conference in Houston.

The remarks come as some energy-rich nations are moving to privatize oil and natural gas resources and were viewed as a challenge to Russia and Middle Eastern nations that are in talks about forming a cartel to oversee natural gas exports.

Yet Bodman did not issue the warning against such cartels that the Wall Street Journal had predicted and Russian officials at the conference had expected. The paper reported details of the speech before it was delivered Wednesday morning.
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http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/4555121.html