AP Photo/Julio Cortez
Danish Minister of Climate, Energy and Utilities is in Houston for Cerawek, the annual Global Energy Conference. Lars Aguard is the second Danish minister to visit Houston this year during a period of tense tensions between the US and Europe.
He is pushing for the wider adoption of renewable energy, a surge in US electricity demand due to the rise in energy-intensive artificial intelligence. As the US leaps towards oil and gas production under President Donald Trump’s control, the US leaps towards oil and gas production as it withdraws from the Paris Climate Agreement, a 2016 treaty that cuts greenhouse gases to avoid catastrophic climate change.
Aagaard said the US withdrawal was “unfortunate to see.”
“Climate change is a reality, it affects us all and requires global efforts,” he said. “So, I’m sorry the US made that decision, but fortunately there are other areas we can work with. One of them is seeing what roads are there to get more renewable energy in the electricity system.”
Danish energy companies like Ørsted already exist in Texas and have made significant investments in wind and solar. According to the Texas Tribune92% of the state’s energy grid growth over the past three years comes from wind, solar and battery storage.
Despite the rapid expansion of renewable energy as part of the Texas Energy Grid, state leaders like Governor Greg Abbott and Lt. Col. Dampatrick We have been calling for an increase in natural gas fuel power plants. In contrast, Denmark aims to eradicate fossil fuels from its energy systems.
“Denmark has a rather ambitious target,” Argard pointed to the country’s goal of not having oil, gas or coal on its grid by 2030.
Morten Bozkov, Minister of Industry, Business and Finance in Denmark; I visited Houston in February. Explore renewable energy, waste management, Denmark-Texas business relationships. If the Kingdom of Denmark didn’t sell Greenland to the US, his visit came shortly after the Trump administration raised tariff prospects
At the time, Bozkov said, “Taxes and taxes are not the right way.” Aagaard reflected that perspective on Monday.
“I think the tariff debate between our two partners is there,” Aguard said. “But my hope is to see as much free trade between the two countries as possible, as we benefit from it.”
According to the Danish Trade Council in North America, business relations between the two countries supported more than 14,000 jobs in Texas and 200,000 jobs in the US as of 2022.
