Energy Secretary Rick Perry plans a summit with his counterparts from Canada and Mexico in Houston this fall, to put together a framework for North America to become the 'OPEC' of the 21st Century, Perry told 1200 WOAI's Joe Pags.
"We can become the literally the energy capital, the energy centric area of the world, and we don't have to rely on places that don't have our best interests in mind," Perry said.
Perry said President Trump, in his six months in office, has taken major steps toward freeing the U.S. industry from 'unreasonable' regulations imposed by the Obama Administration, which he says 'didn't like' fossil fuels, and supported alternative energy 'at all costs.'
Perry says with the resources and the technology that the U.S., Canada, and Mexico can pool among them, there is no reason why 'bad actors' like OPEC and Russia should be able to use their energy resources to intimidate and dictate policy to the world.
"In November, we are going to come together for a trilateral meeting, the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, to discuss how we can come together and create the North American energy strategy," Perry told Joe Pags.
He says he has already met with his counterparts in Canada and Mexico to discuss the deal privately.
Perry says working together, the three nations can supply the world's needs not just in oil and gas, but in atomic energy, legacy fuels like coal, and renewable sources of energy.
He said if you are in Eastern Europe, and you realize that when winter comes, your only source of natural gas is Russia, 'you're not going to like that.'
President Trump has called for not just U.S. energy independence, but U.S. energy dominance, to use the country and the continent's newly unleashed resources as a force for good in the world for progress and democracy.
Perry says that policy is already showing results, and also is putting thousands of American to work in the well paid energy sector."We have seen the first coal shipment, Pennsylvania coal, going to the Ukraine," Perry said. "Coal exports are up almost 60% since this man took his oath of office."