Cutting back the development of oil and resources in the name of addressing climate change concerns is getting energy backward, according to J.P. Morgan bank CEO Jamie Dimon.
“Well, I think we’re getting energy completely wrong, which is, you know, ever since the war started, we’ve known that Europe is going to have a problem and that it was pretty predictable that Putin was going to cut off some gas and certain oil, and oil prices go up,” he said in an interview released Tuesday.
“And by the way, for the climate folks here, it’s made the climate worse, because people had this bad assumption that high oil prices and gas prices reduce consumption, reduce CO2. No. Poor nations, India, China, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, are turning back on coal plants, as are rich nations called Germany, Netherlands, France,” he said.
“We have it completely backwards,” he continued.
“In my view, America should have been pumping more oil and gas, and it should have been supported. You know, we’re trying to have our cake and eat it too.”
BASED Jamie Dimon reemerges, drops uncomfortable truth bombs: “We’re getting energy completely wrong.”
Dimon argues the “green” energy fantasy has made the climate WORSE. We have it “completely backwards.” pic.twitter.com/La37VTA7CT
— Jason Howerton (@jason_howerton) October 11, 2022
During the interview with CNBC, he said, “America needs to play a real leadership role. America is the swing producer, not Saudi Arabia. We should have gotten that right starting in March.”
“It’s almost too late to get it right because obviously, this is a longer-term investment,” he said.
Dimon said short-term shortages linked to the war in Ukraine can be overcome.
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“But we have a longer-term problem now, which is the world is not producing enough oil and gas to reduce coal, make the transition [to green energy], create security for people,” he said.
“I would put it in the critical category. This should be treated almost as a matter of war at this point, nothing short of that.”
Dimon spoke of the volatile times in which the world tries to function.
“Don’t be surprised. Like, I was not surprised at Nord Stream One being blown up,” he said, suggesting tankers could be blown up if they are “in the wrong place.”
During the interview, Dimon touched on the Russian invasion of Ukraine and said, “It’s Pearl Harbor, it’s Czechoslovakia, and it’s really an attack on the Western world.”
“It’s a chance for the Western work to get its act together,” he said.
“You know, the autocratic world thinks that the Western world is a little lazy and incompetent — and there’s a little bit of truth to that. This is the chance to get our act together and to solidify the Western, free, democratic, capitalist, free people, free movements, freedom of speech, free religion for the next century,” he added.
“Because if we don’t get this one right, that kind of chaos you can see around the world for the next 50 years.”
Last month, Dimon told a congressional panel the bank will not embrace a ban on investing in oil and gas development, according to Forbes.
“Absolutely not, and that would be the road to hell for America,” he said.
“We are not getting this right,” Dimon continued. “The world needs effectively 100 million barrels of oil and gas every day, and we need it for 10 years. To do that, we need proper investing in the oil and gas complex.
“Investing in the oil and gas complex is good for reducing CO2, because as we have all seen, because of the high price of oil and gas, particularly for the rest of the world, you’ve seen everyone going back to coal. Not just poor nations like India, Indonesia and Vietnam, but wealthy nations like Germany, France and the Netherlands,” he said.
In August, Dimon tried to state his case that addressing climate concerns and developing oil and gas projects are not mutually exclusive, according to Yahoo.
“We should focus on climate. The problem with that is because of high oil and gas prices, the world is turning back on their coal plants. It is dirtier,” Dimon said.
“Why can’t we get it through our thick skulls, that if you want to solve climate [change], it is not against climate [change] for America to boost more oil and gas?” he said.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
