Industry reacts to Obama's energy plan

WASHINGTON, March 31 (UPI) -- Advocacy groups had mixed reactions to U.S. President Barack Obama's energy plans, with an oil group warning against taxes and green energy declaring victory.

Obama, in a Wednesday speech in Washington, said U.S. energy policy was based on resources that would eventually run out.

He set the "reasonable, achievable and necessary" goal of reducing oil imports by one-third within a decade.

Charles Drevna, president of the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association, said in a statement that Obama was right to look for more internal sources of energy but not at taxpayer expense.

Drevna said it was wrong to saddle U.S. taxpayers with the burden of subsidizing ethanol, electric cars and other alternative energy ideas.

"Instead of adopting a government-led model of command and control, President Obama should let American consumers and the free market determine the energy sources that best meet our economic and national security needs," he said.

But Michael McAdams, president of the Advanced Biofuels Association, said in a statement that breaking old energy habits requires the government's help.

"Many of today's most promising and potentially impactful technologies will simply not be commercialized without the support of our government in the short term," he said.

Obama reiterated his State of the Union proposal to adopt a national "clean energy" standard requiring 80 percent of electricity in the United States be generated from clean energy sources by 2035.