WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY: Good morning and Happy Monday readers! Please join the Daily on Energy team as we wish Maydeen a very Happy Birthday!
With the help of our editor Joe Lawler, today’s newsletter kicks off looking at the Biden administration’s recent claim that it sped up reviews of environmental impact statements by eight months compared to its predecessor.
A wrench has been thrown into the confirmation hearings for Interior Secretary nominee Doug Burgum, as the Senate has yet to receive key ethics paperwork. We also take a look at the impact the Biden administration’s new sanctions on Russian oil have had on oil prices. Plus, read to the end to find out what’s on our schedule for this week.
Welcome to Daily on Energy, written by Washington Examiner energy and environment writers Callie Patteson (@CalliePatteson) and Maydeen Merino (@MaydeenMerino). Email cpatteson@washingtonexaminer dot com or mmerino@washingtonexaminer dot com for tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. If a friend sent this to you and you’d like to sign up, click here. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email, and we’ll add you to our list.
BIDEN CLAIMS TIME SAVINGS ON ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENTS: The Biden administration has said it dramatically cut the average time needed to review key permitting reviews for energy projects, nearly 25% faster than the first Trump administration.
The details: Today, the White House Council on Environmental Quality unveiled new data on how long it took the administration to complete reviews of environmental impact statements (EIS) required under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). These complex reviews only make up around 1% of all environmental analyses under the law and have long taken well over two years to complete.
The Biden administration has said it completed these reviews in a median time of 2.4 years, with roughly 39% having been completed in two years or less from the time a notice of intent was filed for the respective project.
This is nearly a full year less than the median completion time calculated for the Trump administration, which was around 3.1 years with only 27% having been completed in two years. It is also more than a year less than the average review time during the Obama administration. From 2013-2016, it took an average of 3.5 years to complete EIS reviews with only 21% having been completed in two years or less.
“Under President Biden and Vice President Harris, federal agencies are completing environmental reviews for the most complex projects eight months faster than our predecessors, while also expanding the use of expedited environmental reviews for simpler and lower-impact projects,” CEQ Chairwoman Brenda Mallory said. “We are building faster, better, and more efficiently while engaging early with communities, proving that you do not have to choose between quicker permitting and protecting people from pollution and environmental harms.”
Why this matters: While the reduced EIS timelines are a step in the right direction for increased transmission and grid planning, both Republicans and Democrats in Congress are calling for more to be done. Permitting reform is expected to remain top of mind in the coming weeks as the House and Senate failed to come to an agreement on reform in the last Congress. Many disagreements had revolved around changes to NEPA.
SUPREME COURT REJECTS UTAH’S FEDERAL LAND CHALLENGE: The Supreme Court has declined to hear the state of Utah’s bid to control millions of acres of federal land.
The details: In a brief order unveiled today, the court said it will not hear Utah’s lawsuit against the government, without offering up any discussion or reasoning for the decision.
Utah first filed the lawsuit in August, attempting to gain control of around 18.5 million acres of unappropriated land that Republican Gov. Spencer Cox claimed the government was “simply holding, without formally reserving it for any designated purpose.” Unappropriated lands are not included in national parks or national monuments, and are traditionally used for purposes like mining or energy production.
The lawsuit challenged the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, which has allowed the Bureau of Land Management to hold control over nearly 70% of land in the state.
The Supreme Court’s rejection of the challenge does not come as a complete surprise, as legal experts have pointed to promises made by Utah when it was designated a state. Environmental law professor Mark Squillace told the Associated Press in August that the Utah Enabling Act of 1894 includes a provision promising that the state would not make any claims on federal lands, giving the government authority over public lands.
Another SCOTUS reject: Also on Monday, the Supreme Court denied a request from several oil companies that looked to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the city of Honolulu. The lawsuit has accused the companies of misleading the public about the dangers of climate change caused by their products. The city has claimed this has gone on to cause significant damage to local infrastructure and property. Exxon Mobil, BP, Shell, ConocoPhillips, Chevron, Marathon Petroleum, and Sunoco have been named as the defendants.
Read more from the Examiner’s Kaelan Deese on this case here.
BURGUM BUMPED OVER PAPERWORK DELAYS: The confirmation hearing for North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for Interior Secretary, has been delayed as the Senate has yet to receive key paperwork regarding his nomination.
The details: Energy and Natural Resources Chairman Mike Lee of Utah confirmed this afternoon that Burgum’s confirmation hearing, which had been scheduled for tomorrow, has now been postponed until Thursday.
The Republican senator explained that the committee has yet to receive a review from the Office of Government Ethics regarding Burgum’s nomination.
“This bureaucratic delay is unacceptable,” Lee said in a statement. “To ensure transparency and uphold the integrity of this process, the committee will postpone Governor Burgum’s hearing until Thursday. However, we expect OGE to act with urgency and complete its review without further unnecessary delays.”
Democratic pushback: Senate Democrats on the committee, led by Ranking Member Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, have sought to delay the hearing for days over the lack of paperwork. Last week, Heinrich accused Lee of breaking protocol by continuing on with the hearing as scheduled.
He again asked Lee today to postpone the hearing by one week to give the committee members more time to receive and review the standard documents. The Democrat specified that he and his colleagues had not received a financial disclosure report, ethics agreement, or opinions from the designated agency ethics officer and the Office of Government Ethics. These documents, Heinrich and the other Democratic members said, are “required by law of all nominees for positions that require Senate confirmation.”
NEW SANCTIONS DRIVE OIL PRICES TO SIX-MONTH HIGHS: Crude oil prices have hit the highest levels since in half a year as markets have reacted to the tightened sanctions announced by the Biden administration Friday.
Brent crude was up nearly 2%, above $81, late Monday morning.
Refiners in China and India were believed to be seeking alternatives to some Russian imports, UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo told the Financial Times. “There’s some concern that some of this Russian supply will get disrupted,” he said. “That’s supporting prices.”
“New US sanctions on Russia’s oil industry went further than expected,” analysts for Morgan Stanley wrote, according to Bloomberg. “It will take some time to digest these measures, but this creates downside risks to oil supply, at least for a period.”
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICES WARNS OF SEVERE DAMAGING WINDS FUELING LOS ANGELES WILDFIRES: Extreme winds are expected to descend upon Ventura and Los Angeles Counties this week, further fueling the devastating fires that have spread across more than 38,000 acres.
The details: Yesterday afternoon, the National Weather Service issued its more severe warning for the region for 4 a.m. local time Tuesday through midday Wednesday over strong winds with gusts as fast as 70 mph.
“Heads up! Strong, locally damaging, NE/E winds will affect West LA Co. & much of Ventura Co thru Wednesday,” the weather forecasters wrote in a post to X. “Critical fire weather is expected, so PLEASE have multiple ways of getting notifications in case of new fires & prepare ahead of time.”
PowerOutage.us has found that more than 74,600 customers in the area remain without power as the death toll in the region also continues to rise. At least 24 people have died as a result of the wildfires.
Not over yet: This weekend, relatively calm winds gave firefighters and other first responders an opportunity to contain the spread of the three main wildfires that began last Tuesday. As of Monday afternoon, the Hurst Fire was 95% contained, the Eaton Fire was 33% contained and the Palisades Fire was only 14% contained, per Cal Fire.
Fears have grown that the anticipated strong winds, combined with low humidity in the region, will only cause further damage to neighborhoods, wildlife, businesses, and even the Getty Center museum.
“Unfortunately, we’re going right back into red flag conditions with some potential disastrous wind conditions between now and Wednesday, with the peak winds expected to be on Tuesday,” Pasadena Fire Chief Chad Augustin said to the BBC. “While we’re making some progress, the end is not even close yet.”
GERMAN RIGHT WING PARTY PLEDGES TO TEAR DOWN WIND TURBINES: The chairwoman of the German right-wing party Alternative für Deutschland, Alice Weidel, vowed to “tear down all wind turbines.”
“Down with these windmills of shame,” Weidel said at a rally over the weekend, according to Bloomberg.
Why it matters: It’s notable for a political party in a major economy to call not just for halting wind subsidies or stopping construction, but also for tearing down turbines. That’s a step beyond what President-elect Donald Trump has called for. Even though he’s a noted critic of wind power, Trump has called merely for halting new construction, not for taking down turbines that have already been built.
The AfD has risen to relevance in Germany in part for its criticism of the establishment’s environmental agenda, which came under harsher scrutiny after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine upended energy markets and sent costs soaring.
In recent weeks, the AfD has earned the endorsement of Trump ally Elon Musk.
A reality check: While the rhetoric from Weidel is notable, Germany is still far away from seeing its turbines come down. The other major German parties have vowed not to form a coalition with the AfD, which is highly controversial within the country. The anti-immigration and eurosceptic party has tested laws in German meant to prevent political extremism. Elections are scheduled for next month.
CLIMATE PROTEST UPDATE – DARWIN’S GRAVE DEFACED: Just Stop Oil activists defaced the grave of Charles Darwin in Westminster Abbey, Reuters reports, writing “1.5 is dead” on the marble headstone, a reference to the news that global temperatures exceeded 1.5 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial era last year.
A representative for the church said the damage would not be permanent.
A LOOK AHEAD
Jan. 13 The House of Representatives is taking up a number of bills including the Promoting Opportunities to Widen Electrical Resilience (POWER) Act of 2025. A 2024 version of the bill passed in the House in December.
Jan. 14 The American Petroleum Institute holds its 2025 State of American Energy breakfast to discuss the Trump administration’s energy policy priorities, featuring Senate Majority Leader John Thune & House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Bruce Westerman.
Jan. 14 – 16 is the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Seminar in Long Beach, California.
Jan. 15 Energy secretary nominee Chris Wright also appears before the Energy and Natural Resources committee for his confirmation hearing.
Jan. 15 The House of Representatives’ Energy and Commerce committee will be holding its first meeting in the 119th Congress.
Jan. 15 The International Research Institute for Climate and Society at Columbia University’s Center for Climate Systems Research is holding its monthly climate forecast briefing.
Jan. 16 Former New York Congressman Lee Zeldin is set to appear before the Environment and Public Works Senate Committee for his confirmation hearing to head up the Environmental Protection Agency.
Jan. 16 North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum faces his confirmation hearing for Secretary of the Interior before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Jan. 16 The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will be holding its January meeting.
Jan. 16 SAFE’s Center for Critical Minerals Strategy is releasing a report on critical minerals project financing.
Jan. 19 Grassroots Comedy is holding a comedy benefit supporting activist group Climate Defiance.
RUNDOWN
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