Energy Firm, Experts Praise Tillerson, Perry For Trump Cabinet
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NORTH TEXAS (CBS11) - Mike Mauceli said he's seen his share of highs and lows since starting Reef Oil & Gas Companies nearly 30 years ago in 1987.
The plunge in energy prices two years ago meant he had to reduce the staff at his Richardson company from nearly 100 to 30.
"Obviously, it's the most disheartening thing you can do is to let people go," said Mauceli. Tuesday he said, "I'm very excited."
He said he's glad to see President-elect Donald Trump nominate Exxon-Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State and that former Texas Governor Rick Perry will reportedly be tapped as Energy Secretary.
Mauceli called it, "Phenomenal. The reason being is energy is one of the most important segments of the global economy."
It was the Energy Department Perry wanted to eliminate when he ran for President, but he forgot its name during a GOP debate in 2011.
On Tuesday morning, Mr. Trump's transition team praised Perry and his job as Governor during the daily conference call with reporters, and said any cabinet member would have to implement the President-elect's agenda.
Mr. Trump champions a policy of energy independence.
Bernard Weinstein, the Associate Director of the Maguire Energy Institute at SMU said, "I think it would be a boon for the state of Texas because we are the number one producing state and we're also the number one energy consuming state. We would see an administration that would pull back on some of the restrictions that have been imposed by the Obama administration on energy development, not just in Texas, but Alaska and offshore."
Weinstein said while there aren't a lot of people who directly work in the energy industry in the Dallas-Fort Worth region, "We do have a lot of companies that service the energy sector: manufacturing and accounting. The whole state will benefit if we have an increase in energy investment."
Mauceli said reducing regulations would cut energy companies' costs, boost exploration and demand, and enable him to expand and hire more people again.
"We want cheap energy," said Mauceli. "We want energy that is affordable not only for the consumer, but affordable to find and produce here in the U.S."
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