President Biden and the difficult decision on the $8 billion oil project

The New York Times on March 10 (US time) quoted a source familiar with the matter as saying that President Biden had "given the green light" to allow the implementation of the Willow project . The $8 billion project is invested by crude oil producer ConocoPhillips and is being implemented on a pristine area of ​​about 23 million acres on the North Slope of Alaska.

Alaska lawmakers and oil company ConocoPhillips are putting intense pressure on the White House to approve the project, citing President Biden's call for the industry to increase production amid volatile gas prices due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Supporters have cited the Willow project’s benefits, including creating jobs for about 2,500 workers and generating up to $17 billion in revenue for the federal government . Furthermore, if approved by President Biden, the project would help stabilize global oil prices as Europe reduces its dependence on Russian oil and relies on supplies from the United States in recent times.

An exploration site for the Willow project on Alaska's North Slope. Photo: AP

The Willow Project, if approved, would pump 600 million barrels of crude oil over the next 30 years. That would also release about 9.2 million tons of carbon pollution into the environment each year — the equivalent of adding nearly 2 million cars to the road each year. It is also said to threaten the roughly 500 existing residents who live in the pristine area.

The Willow project has also drawn fierce opposition from young people, who are believed to be among the voters who elected Biden as US president. The protesters say that by approving the project, Biden would be “betraying” the president’s promise to help the country wean itself off fossil fuels.

Environmental activists held a rain-soaked protest outside the White House this March and called for opposition to the project on social media. They also launched a “Say No to Willow” petition on Change.org that has more than 3 million signatures and counting.

Protesters protest the Willow Oil project in Alaska. Photo: New York Times

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre denied that a final decision on the Willow project had been made. In that context, the New York Times commented that approving or rejecting the Willow project would be an "extremely difficult" decision for President Joe Biden.

Bang Hung

Source: https://nld.com.vn/thoi-su-quoc-te/tong-thong-biden-va-quyet-dinh-kho-khan-ve-du-an-khai-thac-dau-8-ti-usd-20230311121101604.htm