Energy analyst: Increased North Dakota oil and gas production would help dent Russian military funding

(Fargo, ND) -- Policy analysts say strong oil and gas production in North Dakota and the US will lead to reduced oil profits for Russia, and as a result, put a dent in Russia's ability to fund its military.

"To the extent that these people fund their activities with swollen energy revenues, we can have a massive push to produce American energy, which will push the global price down and make it much harder for these bad actors to get away with what they do and fund their activities," said John Phelan, Economist with American Experiment North Dakota. 

Phelan spoke in Fargo Tuesday on his new report, "Energy Leadership". Phelan and others say energy producers in the state have the resources and the capability to allow North Dakota to become a world leader in gas and oil production, and want the federal government to ease restrictions on producers. They say the move would not only benefit the state and the country, but also contribute to global stability. 

"Really the big thing we just need to happen is for the federal government to get out of the way. There are incredibly strong incentives for energy producers to up their production right now, but we have an administration that has been hostile to North American energy production since day one," said Isaac Orr, Energy Analyst with American Experiment ND and co-author for the report.   

Link to report - "Energy Leadership": https://americanexperimentnd.org/reports/energy-leadership