Minneapolis (Platts)--1Sep2008

The Republican Party is poised to adopt later on Monday an election-year
platform that repudiates its presumptive presidential nominee's federal
solution to curbing greenhouse gas emissions and calls for "accelerated
exploration, drilling and development" of oil and natural gas offshore and
onshore the US.

The platform language on environmental protection may prove awkward for
Arizona Senator John McCain should he be elected president November 4. While
the platform acknowledges the "challenge of climate change," it warns against
"Washington bickering" and rejects "empowering Washington," saying such an
approach would "only lead to unintended consequences and unimagined economic
and environmental pain."

McCain has co-sponsored legislation in Congress to create a national CO2
emissions trading market, commonly known as a cap-and-trade market. His plan
would cut US carbon emissions 60% below 1990 levels by 2050.

The platform asserts that "Republicans caution against the doomsday
scenarios peddled by the afficionados of centralized command-and-control
government. We can--and should--address the risk of climate change based on
sound science without succumbing to the no-growth radicalism that treats
climate questions as dogma rather than as situations to be managed
responsibly."

The platform also advocates unspecified "technology-driven, market-based
solutions."

In addition, the platform calls for more drilling in Montana, North
Dakota and Alaska--the home of Governor Sarah Palin, who McCain chose as his
vice presidential running mate. McCain has opposed drilling in Alaska's Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge, putting him at odds with Palin and the platform,
which opposes any efforts to block access to ANWR.

The platform also promises an expansion of US refining capacity through
an expedited permitting process.

Echoing McCain's repeated advocacy of doing "all of the above" to help
produce more energy in the US, the platform supports "dramatic increases" in
the use of nuclear power as well as making "mainstream" the use of solar,
wind, geothermal and hydroelectric power, including a long-term energy tax
credit for renewable power.

It also calls for support of "entrepreneurs [who] can develop
technologies for a more advanced and robust United States transmission
system."

Clean-coal technologies--including the development of carbon capture and
storage--received strong support. "We firmly oppose efforts by Democrats to
block the construction of new coal-fired power plants," the platform says.
Further, the platform supports a range of efforts to conserve energy
through the use of efficiency measures, such as smart buildings and
thermostats, while noting that "conservation does not mean deprivation."

Adoption of the platform is one of the few business items on Monday's
scaled-down convention agenda. The Republicans on Sunday, at McCain's urging,
canceled all scheduled political speeches out of concern about the effects
from the landfall of Hurricane Gustav on the Gulf Coast.

Speakers whose appearances were cancelled include President Bush, Vice
President Cheney, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Texas Governor
Rick Perry.
--Rod Kuckro, rod_kuckro@platts.com