OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma — Political and power trade leaders are convening for a two-day summit on power safety on Monday in what Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) instructed attendees is “the middle of the power universe.”

Lankford’s feedback got here at a welcome ceremony forward of the American Power Safety Summit, a first-of-its-kind gathering of trade and political leaders hosted by the Hamm Institute for American Power at Oklahoma State College (OSU).

“My foremost job is to say, ‘welcome to Oklahoma,’” Lankford Mentioned in remarks at a welcome gathering Sunday night on the Omni Resort in downtown Oklahoma Metropolis. “I’ve so many people I’ve visited with simply round this reception which have mentioned to me, ‘that is my first time to have the ability to be in Oklahoma.’ Nicely, welcome. That is truly the middle of the power universe. We’re glad you truly acquired right here at this time to see what’s occurring within the middle of the power universe.”

Lankford spoke proper after Dr. Kayse Shrum, the president of OSU, at a power-packed gathering at a restaurant contained in the lodge. Shrum mentioned this occasion shall be a “gathering like no different.”

“In only a few hours, dignitaries from around the globe and throughout the nation will converge on the Hamm Institute for American Power,” Shrum mentioned, opening the ceremony. “We now have probably the most notable thought leaders, decision-makers, and influencers all in the identical room to take part in a sturdy and critically essential dialogue about power safety and what it means for financial prosperity, nationwide safety, and world peace.”

The spotlight of Sunday night’s welcome ceremony was a panel dialogue moderated by CNBC’s Brian Sullivan with Harold Hamm — the multibillionaire founder and govt chairman of Continental Assets — and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Gathered within the standing-room-only viewers in Bob’s Steak and Chop Home on the Omni Resort downtown Oklahoma Metropolis was a strong bunch of leaders, together with a number of cupboard secretaries from former President Donald Trump’s administration along with Pompeo, comparable to former Lawyer Basic Invoice Barr and former Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao, in addition to lawmakers like Rep. Stephanie Bice (R-OK), Lankford, and 2024 GOP presidential candidate North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum. At Monday’s occasion, fellow 2024 candidate and former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley will converse, as will former U.S. Power Secretary Dan Brouillette and plenty of others.

“Everyone knows that power runs our world,” Hamm mentioned when CNBC’s Sullivan requested him to sum up the aim of this convention.

Hamm later hammered the purpose that he continuously makes about emotion, fairly than intelligence, too usually driving power coverage. “It’s about being sensible. It’s about IQ as a substitute of EQ, as I name it — the intelligence quotient as a substitute of the emotional quotient,” Hamm mentioned. “We’ve acquired to be sensible about power. If we are able to get our act collectively right here, the higher off the entire world shall be.”

Pompeo joked that when Hamm known as him to ask him to this occasion, he was “at dwelling counting the gold bars in my secure” — a jab at Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), who was simply indicted for allegedly taking gold bars and vital sums of money as bribes — prompting laughter and a few jeers from the viewers and main Pompeo to surprise aloud if the joke was “too quickly.”

“The fact is there have been only a few conferences I had both as CIA director or as secretary of state the place power wasn’t at or close to the highest of the record,” Pompeo mentioned on a extra severe notice.

Lankford, in his remarks, mentioned that Democrats will usually predict to him that America will ditch oil and fuel by 2035.

“We speak rather a lot in the US Senate about how we’re going to have the ability to transfer our nation ahead and the unbelievable block that’s at present occurring on the straightforward difficulty of allowing and the place we’re going to go sooner or later,” Lankford mentioned. “It’s fascinating to me and I’ve this glorious dialog so usually with my Democratic buddies and colleagues — to not be a partisan clearly — who say, ‘that is the place we’re going to be in 2035.’”

Lankford famous that he’ll smile again at them after which begin reciting knowledge to the Democrats, together with high members of President Joe Biden’s administration. “You’ve acquired the political world and also you’ve acquired the information world, they usually undoubtedly don’t agree. We’re part of the information world,” Lankford mentioned.

On that notice, proper after Lankford, the subsequent speaker was Dr. Amrita Sen — the founder and director of analysis for Power Points — a worldwide analysis home that advises lots of of firms on power issues.

Sen famous that the share of fossil gasoline utilization as an power supply is identical now — 82 p.c — because it was within the Nineteen Eighties.

Hamm predicted in the course of the panel that it’s going to not change within the coming many years, even with the push in direction of electrical automobiles and different adjustments within the power trade. Requested by Sullivan the place the demand for oil and fuel shall be in 25 years, Hamm predicted will probably be “about the identical.”

“All of the research which were completed exhibits that we’re going to be on oil and fuel for the subsequent hundred years,” Hamm mentioned.

Pompeo lambasted the Biden administration’s electrical automobile insurance policies, too, arguing they’re the driving power behind the United Auto Employees’ (UAW) present strikes.

“You may see hundreds of UAW employees on strike as we’re going to maneuver to EVs over a number of hours or regardless of the Biden administration is hoping for,” Pompeo mentioned. “That’s not political. That’s simply unhealthy math.”

Sen, throughout her remarks, additionally pointed to creating nations as a driver of power demand.

“Fifteen p.c of the world’s inhabitants consumes 40 p.c of the world’s power,” Sen mentioned. “It’s very straightforward for us to say, ‘you creating nations shouldn’t be burning electrical energy of any variety.’ We don’t have the proper to say that. I grew up in India. Once I grew up, electrical energy wasn’t assured. That’s true at this time of just about all of Africa and a big a part of Latin America and Southeast Asia. I believe we now have to get out, significantly for the U.S. which is such an enormous producer and potential producer of oil and fuel, it doesn’t make sense to not serve these power wants.”

Sen predicted that the demand for oil and fuel will “proceed to rise” worldwide, significantly in “rising market nations.”

“Power consumption and financial progress go hand-in hand,” Sen mentioned, noting that the world, and significantly the US, is “sleep strolling into” a “disaster” of an absence of sufficient power being produced to fulfill rising demand worldwide.

“One way or the other, with the problems we now have on the political entrance and never with the ability to talk between trade and politics of political eventualities, I worry this disaster is barely going to worsen and worse,” Sen mentioned. Excessive oil and fuel costs — or a minimum of oil costs — are right here to remain merely due to a few of these points with the mismanagement of our provide. Gasoline is barely completely different however once more — long run — very, very related.”

There must be, Sen mentioned, “collaboration” between trade and authorities, and “governments have to know the necessity to have safety of demand if they’re going to have safety of provide.”

Pompeo mentioned he hopes the US will acknowledge its potential in power manufacturing.

“The US has acquired to do its half to ship this extremely inexpensive product that can serve the whole world,” Pompeo mentioned.

However maybe Lankford put it greatest when he predicted that crucial a part of this novel gathering shall be the truth that it’s forcing a dialog about power between those that make it and those that make coverage about it.

“Once I say welcome, I’m absolutely conscious that the facility of the dialog shall be a few of the issues that occur within the session however fairly frankly will probably be most of the conversations you have got over dinner and breakfast and in aspect conversations within the hallways and inside conferences,” Lankford mentioned. “I encourage you to tug folks apart and begin speaking.”

“For all of you that make it attainable for me to drive my truck, fly on an airplane forwards and backwards to Washington, DC, and flick a lightweight swap on in my home, thanks for what you do,” the senator added.