"Every day our servicemen and women put their lives on the line so that oil can flow from around the world to America's gas stations," he said. "But let there be no doubt, we pay a heavy price."

Kerry, one of six declared Democratic candidates who plan to seek their party's nomination to challenge Bush in the 2004 presidential election, said the United States cannot drill its way to self-sufficiency along the lines favored by Bush in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Instead, he urged development of technology to make homes, businesses and transportation more efficient while creating a national market for biofuels from crops, wood and waste.