WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY: Good afternoon and happy Thursday, readers!
President Donald Trump signed resolutions canceling California’s auto emissions rules, the biggest blow the administration has yet struck against electric vehicles and the most significant Congressional Review Act signing yet.
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In addition, with the help of our editor Joe Lawler, Daily on Energy also takes a look at the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee text for the Republican spending bill.
Keep reading to see what Energy Secretary Chris Wright has to say about U.S. oil production.
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.
TRUMP REPEALS CALIFORNIA VEHICLE EMISSION WAIVERS: President Donald Trump signed three resolutions into law that will end Environmental Protection Agency waivers that allow California to set its own emissions standards for autos, which would eventually ban gas-powered vehicles.
Trump signed the resolutions at a ceremony at the White House, at which he gave shout-outs to a number of administration officials and GOP representatives, while also engaging in lengthy discursive remarks on a range of topics, from the Federal Reserve to Iran.
Trump blamed the Biden administration for giving “leftwing radicals in California dictatorial powers to control the future of the entire car industry, all over the country, all over the world.”
The measures, which were passed through the Congressional Review Act, prevent any similar rules from being promulgated. But, as Maydeen wrote in a story on the signing, there is a question about whether the waivers were legally subject to cancellation via the CRA.
As expected, California immediately sued over the resolutions, joined by 10 states.
A notable remark: During his remarks, Trump claimed that he does not oppose EVs. “I’m all for electric,” he said. “You should be given the option to buy electric, buy a gasoline-powered car, buy a hybrid.”
He added, though, that the public should not buy hydrogen vehicles, saying that they explode.
Read more by Maydeen here.
SENATE ENERGY COMMITTEE RECONCILIATION TEXT REVIVES LAND SALES: The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee unveiled its text for the reconciliation bill yesterday evening, restoring public lands sales for housing and cutting energy credits.
The committee’s text for the Republican megabill included a provision to sell certain Bureau of Land Management and National Forest System land to address the housing crisis. The provision was led by Republican Chairman Mike Lee of Utah.
States that would be eligible for land sales are Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. The committee said the provision requires the BLM and FS to sell a minimum of 0.5% and a maximum of 0.75% of their estates for housing development.
The provision was in the House version of the reconciliation bill but was met with criticism from lawmakers. Committee Ranking Member Martin Heinrich of New Mexico said yesterday that if the provision was included in the bill, it could hinder the Senate’s chance of passing the resolution. Democrats will likely not vote for the bill despite what provisions are included.
The committee’s bill also includes repeals programs from the Inflation Reduction Act, slashing the State-Based Home Energy Efficiency Contractor Training Grants; Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing; Tribal Energy Loan Guarantee Program; Interregional and Offshore Wind Electricity Transmission Planning, Modeling, and Analysis; and others.
A BOOST FOR NUCLEAR GLOBALLY: The World Bank has dropped its ban on funding nuclear power plants, the New York Times reports.
The ban had been in place since 2013, but the bank has not funded a nuclear project since 1959.
The change marks a shift in global perceptions of nuclear power. The Trump administration strongly supports construction of nuclear plants, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had endorsed a removal of the ban this April.
Opposition from others, such as Germany, has receded in light of growing recognition that nuclear power can help lower emissions.
Todd Moss, the executive director of the Energy for Growth Hub, said that the change in policy could be “potentially massive, especially in Southeast Asia.” Vietnam and Indonesia, for instance, are heavily dependent on coal and could benefit from loans to help them increase nuclear power production.
WRIGHT BRUSHES OFF EIA PREDICTION FOR OIL PRODUCTION TO DROP NEXT YEAR: Energy Secretary Chris Wright dismissed a projection from the Energy Information Administration that oil production will drop next year thanks to lower prices.
“We have seen weak prices for a few months, and if prices are too low for an economic incentive, you’ll see some drilling reduce on the margin,” Wright said in an interview on Bloomberg Television. “I think it’s unlikely you’ll see enough reduction to actually see a decline in production next year.”
Reminder: Wright has maintained that oil production can ramp up even as prices fell this spring close to the $60 mark. That view has put him at odds with many in the industry, who say that higher prices are needed to make drilling viable.
The EIA said yesterday in its June Short-Term Energy Outlook that production will decline from an all-time high of 13.5 million barrels per day in the second quarter of this year to about 13.3 million bpd by the end of next year because of a drop in drilling and active rigs.
But Wright says the administration can help the industry lower its costs and thus drill profitably at lower prices.
“This administration is making it lower cost for them to drill wells and therefore a lower threshold at which they would start to pull back activity,” he said.
Flak from Trump: Trump ribbed Wright over oil prices at the White House CRA signing today, saying he was “going to call and really start screaming” at Wright.
BRITAIN SEEKS TO IMPLEMENT U.S. TARIFF DEAL: Britain’s trade minister Jonathan Reynolds said the United Kingdom is looking to implement its side of the U.S. tariffs deal, Reuters reports.
Earlier this month, the U.S. and Britain agreed to reduce tariffs on U.K. exports of cars and steel and U.S. exports of beef and ethanol. But the deal has since been delayed.
Reynolds, after meeting Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick this week, said he was “very hopeful” there could be an update on the deal soon. Reuters reported that officials said the update could come as early as next week.
A major topic of discussion is tariffs on U.K. steel. Lutnick said he wanted to ensure that there is a tariff reduction for the UK steel industry.
ICYMI – U.S.-JAPAN NATURAL GAS DEAL ANNOUNCED: Japanese energy company JERA signed a deal to purchase liquified natural gas companies from four U.S.-based companies.
Cheniere Marketing LLC, Commonwealth LNG, NextDecade Corporation, and Sempra Infrastructure signed a deal at the Department of Energy with JERA to purchase up to 5.5 million tons of LNG per year from the suppliers. The deal is an effort to shift Japan away from Russian LNG.
“In a short few months since the administration took office, the world has changed. It is directly as a result of your hard work, your efforts and foresight, that we’ve implemented these agreements in the last few months. It is truly appreciated,” Commonwealth LNG President and CEO Farhad Ahrabi said at the signing ceremony.
Read more by Washington Examiner’s Morgan Kromer here.
RUNDOWN
Inside Climate News How Did the Housing Crisis Revitalize Efforts by Western Republicans to Sell Off Public Lands?
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