Fossil fuel production is pushed at a summit sponsored by the state.

OKLAHOMA CITY -- CEOs of four Oklahoma energy companies encouraged state leaders Thursday to support polices that encourage the responsible use of fossil fuels and promote exploration and production.

Larry Nichols, chairman and CEO of Oklahoma City-based Devon Energy Corp., told a group of legislators, energy industry leaders and consumers that alternative energy sources are useful, "but they are not the total solution."

Devon Energy is the nation's largest independent producer of oil and natural gas.

"It is a great crime against our city, our state and out country not to nurture these historical sources of energy," Nichols said during a panel discussion that was part of the daylong Oklahoma Energy Summit 2007.

Nichols was joined in the discussion of world energy issues by Aubrey McClendon, chairman and CEO of Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake Energy Corp; H.G. "Buddy" Kleemeier, president and CEO of Tulsa-based Kaiser-Francis Oil Co.; and Harold Hamm, chairman and CEO of Continental Resources Inc. in Enid.

The summit was organized by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission and the offices of the state energy secretary and the state secretary of the environment. The goal was to begin a discussion among energy leaders that would ultimately influence the state's energy policies.

The event, held at the Oklahoma History Center, included speakers who addressed fossil fuels, alternative energy, energy conservation and electricity transmission.

The executives addressed energy trends and issues, and how they will affect Oklahoma's energy future.

Nichols said today's energy companies face a business climate in which foreign governments are playing a larger role in energy production and profit-taking, while the U.S. still restricts drilling along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.

"This country has a serious energy challenge," he said.

Nichols said any energy policy should include alternative sources. But it should also balance emotion with science by trying to make historic sources of energy more "environmentally friendly."

McClendon emphasized the abundance of natural gas supplies and extolled the fuel as the cleanest practical alternative to unreliable oil supplies.

"I don't believe we have an energy crisis," he said. "Instead, we have a transportation fuel crisis."

McClendon, who heads the third-largest producer of natural gas in the nation, said natural gas-powered cars and power plants combined with wind and solar power will help the environment and help break the dependence on oil.

"We have trouble meeting a 2 percent increase in fuel demand for cars and trucks," he said following the presentation.

Kleemeier said the U.S. excels at exploiting its existing reserves of natural gas, pointing to the success of production from shale formations.

"Its amazing the technology that is being developed," he said. "We can remain competitive in natural gas for a long time."

He told regulators to "do no harm" when considering policy.

Hamm said oil is 85 percent of Continental Resources' overall production and that the company pursues the resource with as much tenacity as gas producers explore for that energy source.

He encouraged other operators to search for oil as well, and for regulators and legislators to be "pro-business."

Jason Womack 581-8380
jason.womack@tulsaworld.com