WASHINGTON (AP) – President-elect Donald Trump is promoting U.S. “energy dominance” around the world as he seeks to boost U.S. oil and gas drilling and move away from President Joe Biden’s focus on energy policy. ” and plans to establish a national energy council. climate change.
The Energy Council, led by Doug Burgum of North Dakota, Trump’s pick for Secretary of the Interior, will “drill, drill, drill” and sell more oil and other energy sources to Europe and allies, Trump said. is the key to our commitment. all over the world.
The new council will have comprehensive authority over federal agencies involved in energy permitting, production, generation, distribution, regulation, and transportation, eliminating bureaucratic red tape and strengthening private sector investment. , will be tasked with focusing on innovation rather than “totally unnecessary regulation”. ” Trump said.
But President Trump’s energy aspirations are likely to reach their limits in the real world. First, U.S. oil production under the Biden administration is already at record levels. The federal government cannot force companies to drill for more oil, and increased production could lead to lower prices and lower profits.
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The call for energy primacy (a phrase Trump used during his first term as president) is “an opportunity, not a necessity” for the oil industry to proceed with drilling projects on terms deemed more favorable to the oil industry. Energy analyst Kevin Book said it was something Biden proposed.
Mr. Book, a managing partner at Clearview Energy Partners, a research firm in Washington, said whether Mr. Trump achieves energy dominance, however he defines it, “will depend on global market demand and supply. “It’s up to private companies to decide based on how they view the balance.” Don’t expect an influx of new oil rigs scattered across the country anytime soon, he said.
President Trump’s efforts to increase oil supplies and lower U.S. prices have been complicated by his threat this week to impose 25% import tariffs on Canada and Mexico, the U.S.’s biggest sources of oil imports. The U.S. oil industry has warned that tariffs could increase prices and even harm national security.
“Canada and Mexico are our nation’s largest energy trading partners, and maintaining the free flow of energy products across our borders is critical to North American energy security and U.S. consumers.”Oil Industry said Scott Lauerman of the American Petroleum Institute, its top lobbying group. group.
American Fuel Petrochemical Manufacturers, which represents U.S. refineries, also said in a statement, “America’s refineries are committed to producing the affordable, reliable fuels that consumers rely on every day. “We rely on crude oil from Canada and Mexico,” he said, opposing potential tariffs.
Scott Segal, a former Bush administration official, said the idea of centralizing energy policy decisions in the White House follows the example of Biden, who appointed three White House advisers to lead climate change policy. . Segal, a partner at law and policy firm Bracewell, described Burgum as a “steady executive” with experience in fossil fuels and renewable energy.
And unlike Biden’s climate advisers Gina McCarthy, John Podesta and Ali Zaidi, Burgum will likely take a White House post as a Senate-confirmed Cabinet member, Segal said. .
Dustin Meyer, senior vice president of policy, economics and regulatory affairs at the American Petroleum Institute, said the creation of the New Energy Council is “a good thing” for the U.S. economy and trade. “Conceptually, it makes a lot of sense to make as many adjustments as possible,” he said.
Still, “market trends are always key” to potential increases in energy production, Meyer said.
Jonathan Elkind, a senior researcher at Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy, called energy primacy an “intentionally vague concept” but added, “I don’t know how[President Trump]is going to add more oil to an already saturated market.” It’s hard to see how they can push the issue.”
President Trump has promised to cut gas prices to below $2 a gallon, but experts say that’s highly unlikely because oil prices would need to fall significantly to reach that goal. . Gasoline prices nationwide averaged $3.07 as of Wednesday, down from $3.25 a year ago.
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Elkind and other experts said they expect the new energy council to focus not only on oil but also on renewable energy such as wind, solar and geothermal energy, and on nuclear power. None of these energy resources cause greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change.
Elkind, who served as assistant secretary of energy in the Obama administration, said: “The lack of focus on climate change, which threatens our planet’s survival, is of great concern and will lead to very significant losses of American property and American lives.” ” he said. He cited federal statistics showing there have been 20 weather disasters this year, each causing more than $1 billion in damage. A total of 418 people died.
President Trump has downplayed the risks posed by climate change and promised to cancel unspent funds from Biden’s landmark climate and health care bill, the Inflation Control Act. He also said he would halt offshore wind development when he returns to the White House in January.
Still, his Nov. 15 announcement to the Energy Council said he would “expand all forms of energy production to grow the economy and create good-paying jobs.”
Safak Yucel, an associate professor at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, said this includes renewable energy.
“The Energy Council’s mission is American global advantage, but what’s more American than American solar and American wind?” he asked. A report from Ernst & Young last year showed that solar power is the cheapest source of new electricity in many markets.
President Trump said in a statement that he wants to significantly increase baseload power to reduce power costs, avoid brownouts and “win the battle for AI supremacy.”
In comments to reporters before he was named to the energy post, Burgum cited similar goals, citing increased demand for electricity due to artificial intelligence, commonly known as AI, and burgeoning data centers. “The AI battle will impact everything from national defense to health care to education to productivity,” Burgum said.
Yucel and other experts say President Trump is unlikely to repeal the climate change law, which he has dubbed “the new green scam.” One reason is that most of the investment and jobs are in Republican congressional districts. Republican lawmakers urged House Speaker Mike Johnson to preserve the bill, which passed with only Democratic votes.
Yucel pointed out that Republican-led states have added thousands of jobs in wind, solar and battery power generation in recent years. I like renewable energy.”
If renewable energy makes economic sense, “renewables will continue,” he added.
