"The problem is clear. This problem did not develop overnight, and it's not going to be fixed overnight. But it's now time to fix it," the president said in a speech to small-business owners.

No new refineries have been built in the United States in 30 years. The newest nuclear power plants were finished a decade ago.

Bush, whose approval ratings have dipped in recent polls to some of the lowest levels of his presidency, did not urge Americans to curb their personal consumption but said technology made it possible to meet their needs with less.

"Our country is on the doorstep of incredible technological advances that will make energy more abundant and more affordable for our citizens. By harnessing the power of technology, we're going to be able to grow our economy, protect our environment and achieve greater energy independence," he said.

It was Bush's second energy speech in a week, and the remarks came two days after the president and Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz failed at talks in Texas to agree on a short-term fix for sky-high prices.

"To help in the near term, we'll continue to encourage oil-producing countries to maximize their production, to say to countries that have got some excess capacity, 'Get it on the market, so you do not destroy the consumers that you rely upon to buy your energy'," the president said.

But the US leader did not ask the crown prince to expand current oil output, senior US officials acknowledged, while Saudi officials said the kingdom had some spare capacity that it could bring to market if asked.

Bush pushed for the construction of new atomic energy plants, saying: "Nuclear power is one of the safest, cleanest sources of power in the world, and we need more of it here in America."

He said the United States drew about 20 percent of its electricity from such plants, and had not ordered a new power plant since the 1970s, while France built 58 plants and draws 78 percent of its electricity from nuclear power.

Bush sought congressional approval for providing federal risk insurance to companies looking to build nuclear power plants, in an effort to mitigate the additional cost of unforeseen delays as the firms seek licenses.

He also pushed for cooperation between Washington and states hurt economically by job losses following the closure of military bases to promote the construction of new oil refineries on those sites.

And he proposed broadening the reach of a 10-year, 2.5-billion-dollar tax credit problem now available to hybrid gasoline-electric and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles to cover those powered by clean-burning diesel.

Bush also asked the US Congress to give the federal government, rather than individual states, the authority to determine the location of new liquefied natural gas terminals.

He also pushed lawmakers to include the proposals in his energy plan -- which has stalled in the Senate -- and approve the package even as the White House acknowledges that it will not have an impact on gas prices for years.

The president did not, however, ask Americans to consume less energy.

In early 2001, Vice President Dick Cheney -- also a former oil company executive -- said that "conservation may be a sign of personal virtue, but it is not a sufficient basis for a sound, comprehensive energy policy."

That same year, then-White House spokesman Ari Fleischer dismissed a question about whether the US lifestyle's voracious energy appetite was to blame for costly gasoline by answering: "That's a big no ... the American way of life is a blessed one."

All rights reserved. � 2005 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.

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