The challenges of satisfying world energy demand require substantial, sustained investments, US Sec. of Energy Samuel W. Bodman told an annual executive conference in Houston sponsored by Cambridge Energy Research Associates.“The key to unlocking our energy future is ensuring that the innovation cycle continues at a rapid pace,” Bodman said. “We must leverage the tremendous power of private equity, while also making smart public funding decisions, to unleash the world’s best scientists and engineers on the problem.”After leaving the conference, Bodman joined Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour in that state to designate Richton, Miss., as a new site for the US Str...