August 1, 2005
Secretary Bodman visits (pdf) DOE's Oak Ridge National Laboratory to tour the facility and host an all-hands meeting with lab employees. The Secretary tells the employees that he is pleased and enthusiastic, on the whole, with the Energy Policy Act, particularly in that it has measures to encourage more nuclear energy generation. When asked what methods of generation he would stress if he were an energy executive, he replies "nuclear," and then, "solar." Although noting some reservations about the viability of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies as energy alternatives, the Secretary stresses the need for energy research. "We will," he says, "run out of natural gas and oil." Secretary Bodman observes that "DOE is not the best managed organization I have ever encountered," and he gives the agency's organizational stovepiping and poor communication across organizations as examples of areas he would like to improve.