Trump to deliver energy policy speech at Pittsburgh shale conference

Donald Trump's top energy adviser stumped for the Republican presidential nominee Wednesday during a shale industry conference that organizers billed as a nonpartisan event.

The Shale Insight conference in the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Downtown, figures to become decidedly more partisan Thursday when Trump delivers an energy policy speech inside the convention center as protesters congregate outside.

“How fortunate you are to have Donald Trump coming (Thursday) to talk with you. ... I've found him to be a tremendous person,” Harold G. Hamm, the billionaire chairman and CEO of Oklahoma City-based energy company Continental Resources, told the Shale Insight crowd.

Hamm compared Trump to Ronald Reagan and said Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's energy policies would harm the oil and gas industry. Hamm criticized her handling of sensitive emails and the Benghazi attack while secretary of State.

“There's someone on one side who wants to put us out of business, and someone on the other side who can help us,” said Hamm, who has been mentioned as a candidate for energy secretary should Trump be elected.

Hamm's 27-minute speech took aim at industry regulations imposed by President Obama, protests by “enviros” who oppose drilling and the building of new pipelines, and Saudis who “fight to retain dominance of global oil.”

None of them can stop an “American energy renaissance (that) will be the growth engine of the world for the next 50 years,” Hamm said.

Trump said last week that he plans to “unleash an energy revolution that will bring vast new wealth to our country” with policies that will boost the gross domestic product by $100 billion and create 500,000 new jobs annually by, among other things, “lifting unnecessary restrictions on all sources of American energy.”

Trump's scheduled appearance prompted at least one conference sponsor — the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 66 — to pull the plug on its sponsorship.

“We support the Marcellus shale industry and the ample work the industry brings to our union members. However, we cannot support a conference that highlights Donald Trump, a candidate who would make life harder for working people,” said Local 66 Business Manager Jim Kunz.

Groups including Pittsburghers Against Trump and the Pittsburgh Student Solidarity Coalition posted messages on social media announcing their plans to protest Trump's visit. Unions plan to hold a joint news conference at 9:30 a.m. in the lobby of the United Steelworkers Building at 60 Boulevard of the Allies.

Trump is scheduled to speak between 10:10 and 11:50 a.m., according to his schedule of events.

After Hamm's speech, Marcellus Shale Coalition spokesman Travis Windle said, “The conference has always been focused on policies that impact our industry, and it's certainly never been a partisan event.”

Windle pointed to 2012, when representatives for Obama and GOP challenger Mitt Romney spoke at the conference. The coalition invited both candidates this year, but Clinton declined.

“We look forward to hearing from Mr. Trump this week and regret that Secretary Clinton declined our offer to speak,” Windle said.

As for choosing Hamm, a vocal supporter of Trump, to headline the first day of the conference, Windle said, “(Hamm) literally pioneered Bakken shale, and this is an oil and gas conference. It makes absolute, crystal-clear sense that he would come speak to his peers in the industry. ... He's an industry leader in his own right.”

Conference-goers had an opportunity to hear from a slew of industry leaders Wednesday. Beyond looking at the growing role that natural gas plays in powering the economy, many of the panels and presentations focused on the industry's need for more pipelines and other infrastructure — and the unique challenges that companies face trying to carry out such projects, including opposition from environmental groups and property owners, media scrutiny and political and regulatory hurdles.

“You must stay engaged, and you must stay positive,” said Blue Jenkins, an executive vice president at Downtown-based EQT Corp.

Tom Fontaine is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 412-320-7847 or tfontaine@tribweb.com.