House panel: Russia aimed to disrupt US energy markets using social media

collected by :Victor Alphen

as mentioned in Russia used several American social media accounts in an attempt to disrupt U.S. energy markets, according to a House committee report released Thursday. The committee surmised that the disinformation campaign on social media is connected to Russian fears that a strong U.S. energy economy could negatively impact Russia's oil and natural gas economy. Eastern and central European countries currently get about 75 percent of their natural gas from Russia, with southeastern European countries receiving nearly all of their natural gas from Moscow. For example, Poland recently signed a five-year deal with the U.S. to import liquefied natural gas to decrease dependency on Russian energy supplies, according to the report. U.S. energy exports to European countries are increasing, which means they will have less reason to rely upon Russia for their energy needs.

Russian social media accounts tried to disrupt US energy markets: House committee - Electric Power

Russian social media accounts tried to disrupt US energy markets: House committeeRussian social media accounts attempted to disrupt US energy markets last year by stirring opposition to shale drilling and infrastructure projects like the Dakota Access Pipeline, a House of Representatives committee said in a report Thursday. The House Committee on Science, Space and Technology said data from Twitter, Facebook and Instagram "confirmed that Russian agents were exploiting American social media platforms in an effort to disrupt domestic energy markets, suppress research and development of fossil-fuels, and stymie efforts to expand the use of natural gas." Article continues below...Video -- Changing lanes: What EVs mean for the energy system What do electric vehicles and future transport mean for the global energy system? "America's emergency as a global energy exporter presents a significant threat to Russian energy interests," the report said. "Such competition reduces the revenue and influence generated by Russian energy exports.

Russians used social media to stir divisions on U.S. energy policy: lawmakers

according to Democrats on the panel and environmentalists criticized Republicans for focusing on energy policy instead of election meddling. "The American people deserve to know if what they see on social media is the creation of a foreign power seeking to undermine our domestic energy policy," Smith said. A specialist on energy and foreign policy said the postings likely had little influence on U.S. energy markets. "It's almost impossible to change U.S. energy policy through a social media campaign," said Brenda Shaffer, a professor at Georgetown University, "a campaign would have to affect both the state and federal levels to be effective." Trump has called investigations into possible cooperation between his presidential campaign and Russians a political "witch hunt."