WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY: Good afternoon and happy Tuesday, readers! In today’s Daily on Energy, we take a look at Republican Energy and Commerce Committee members touring energy sites in Texas and New Mexico. Republicans touted the importance of boosting oil and gas production to maintain energy stability and dominance.
The newsletter also takes a look at Meta’s deal to acquire over a thousand megawatts of nuclear power from Constellation Energy over the next 20 years.
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Continue reading to find out who President Donald Trump will appoint as the new Republican chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
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.
ENERGY AND COMMERCE COMMITTEE MEMBERS TAKE A TRIP TO FRACKING COUNTRY: Republican members on the Energy and Commerce Committee visited Texas and New Mexico yesterday to tour energy-related facilities and emphasize the importance of increasing energy production.
Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie and Texas Rep. August Pfluger led a group of Republican committee members yesterday on a trip to a fracking site in Texas and a uranium enrichment facility in New Mexico.
The other committee members on the trip were Rep. Gary Palmer of Alabama, Rep. Randy Weber of Texas, Rep. Rick Allen of Georgia, Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa, Rep. Russell Fry of South Carolina, Rep. Nick Langworthy of New York, and Rep. Craig Goldman of Texas.
On the trip, members highlighted the importance of natural gas production for power generation, especially in light of the soaring demand from artificial intelligence and data centers.
Lawmakers noted that power plants across the country are set to retire in the next decade, while energy demand spikes. They cautioned that without more natural gas suppliers, Americans may face more disruptions to their electricity supply.
“[W]e saw firsthand the critical work being done to power our country. We’re in a race with China to lead in AI, and winning that race will require reliable, affordable energy,” Guthrie said. “Oil, natural gas, and nuclear power are key to that effort. I’m grateful to our members who are driving solutions to bring more power online and meet America’s growing energy demands.”
Republican lawmakers have sought to boost oil and gas projects. The House last month passed its version of the reconciliation, which included provisions for streamlining natural gas projects. Lawmakers vowed to continue to work on legislation to streamline oil and natural gas production.
“Under Chairman Guthrie’s leadership, we are working in Congress and alongside the energy sector to support reliable baseload power. We know that natural gas is essential to securing our electric grid, and we are committed to protecting it to strengthen America’s energy future,” Pfluger said.
META SIGNS 20-YEAR NUCLEAR DEAL: Tech giant Meta announced today a deal to purchase more than a thousand megawatts of nuclear power from Constellation Energy over the next 20 years, deepening its investment in the power source to advance its artificial intelligence ambitions.
The details: Meta plans to purchase 1,121 megawatts of nuclear energy from the Clinton Clean Energy Center in central Illinois to support the company’s operations in the region, as AI and data center development continue to fuel growing energy demand. While Meta is expected to purchase the plant’s entire power output, the energy produced is not set to power the company’s data centers directly.
The purchase agreement is set to go into effect in June 2027, pending a key approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The nuclear plant’s current operating license expires in April 2027, though Constellation Energy applied for a 20-year extension last year.
The parent company of Facebook said today that part of the agreement aims to support Constellation Energy’s application for the relicensing, ensuring critical long-term investment to keep the power plant open.
The financial details of the purchase agreement have not been publicly released, though it is estimated to preserve more than 1,000 jobs, generate $13.5 million in annual tax revenue, and add $1 million in charitable giving to local nonprofit organizations. Under the deal, Constellation Energy will invest in upgrading the nuclear plant to increase its output by at least 30 megawatts to the local grid.
Read more from Callie here.
TRUMP TO REPLACE FERC CHAIRMAN: President Donald Trump is planning to replace the sitting Republican chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, a move that caught the independent body by surprise.
The details: In a post shared to X last night, sitting Chairman Mark Christie said he was informed of the news through a media inquiry.
“I learned this evening from a media inquiry that Pres. Trump has appointed Laura Swett to replace me when my term expires,” Christie wrote. “I congratulate Laura and wish her the best.”
The chairman said he would remain in office for a few weeks after this date in order to help push a few key orders out of the commission. He was first appointed to FERC in January 2021 after being nominated the previous summer by Trump, during his first administration. Christie’s term was set to expire on June 30.
The replacement: According to Christie, Trump intends to nominate Vinson and Elkin attorney Laura Swett to his seat. Swett, who specializes in energy litigation, previously served at FERC for five years under the second Obama administration and the first Trump administration. She was primarily an attorney adviser for the commission, and later worked as a senior legal and policy adviser for former commissioners Kevin McIntyre and Bernard McNamee.
Read more from Callie here.
MIKE LEE TO TRY TO REVIVE PUBLIC LAND SALES IN RECONCILIATION: Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chair Mike Lee told E&E News that he wants to reinstate provisions for sale or transfer of millions of acres in Utah and Nevada that were cut from the House mega bill last month.
Politico reported yesterday that the Environment and Public Works Committee could release the text of its portion of the bill as soon as this week.
Republican Reps. Mark Amodei of Nevada and Celeste Maloy of Utah sponsored a committee amendment to allow public land sales or transfers as a way to address housing needs.
Some members, including Montana Republican Sen. Steve Daines, have vocally opposed public land sales. Republican lawmakers have targeted finalizing the mega spending bill by Independence Day.
ENERGY CABINET ALASKA VISIT CONTINUES: Trump’s energy and environment cabinet members were still in Alaska today for the third day of Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin, and Energy Secretary Chris Wright’s visit to the 49th state.
The details: All three were scheduled to speak during Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s Sustainable Energy Conference this afternoon in Anchorage for a presentation titled, “Lunch with the Energy Cabinet.” The presentation was scheduled to start at 12:30 p.m. local time (4:30 p.m. EST).
The EPA confirmed to Daily on Energy that following today’s conference, Zeldin plans to remain in Alaska until Saturday for agency-related meetings.
Yesterday afternoon, the cabinet members traveled to Prudhoe Bay in the North Slope of Alaska, which is the largest oil field in North America. There, all three touted the administration’s efforts to expand oil and gas operations in the state, particularly through the 800-mile Alaska LNG pipeline. The pipeline is expected to play a key role for increasing LNG exports to Asian customers in South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan.
Dunleavy emphasized the importance of making this pipeline operational in an op-ed published this afternoon. He insisted that the pipeline is critical for providing energy security to nations like South Korea, while also helping lower their carbon footprint and reduce reliance on coal.
“A long-term, secure LNG supply paired with technology collaboration can provide Seoul with the energy stability it needs, while enhancing regional decarbonization and alliance cohesion,” Dunleavy wrote.
SOLAR INDUSTRY POINTS TO RED STATE JOB LOSSES TIED TO GOP MEGA TAX BILL: Upward of 330,000 jobs across America in the solar industry are at risk with Republicans’ reconciliation budget bill written as is, lobbying groups now warn.
The details: Today, the Solar Energy Industries Association released a state-by-state analysis detailing how many jobs could be lost if the Senate advances the House-passed reconciliation tax bill without softening the cuts to clean energy tax credits.
The analysis found that jobs are at risk in every single U.S. state, from as few as 100 in South Dakota to as many as 35,700 in California. Republican-leaning states like Texas and Florida are expected to see major losses, with up to 34,100 and 21,800 respective jobs at risk. The northern states of New York, Michigan, and Illinois could also lose 8,600, 7,500, and 13,900 respective jobs.
SEIA president and CEO Abigail Ross Hopper told Callie that these job losses would be “encompassing.” It would likely be made up of project cancellations and factory closures that would eliminate future construction, environmental and engineering analysis, financing, installations, sales and customer service, maintenance work, and much more.
“In my mind, this really isn’t about subsidies or not subsidies. It’s about, how in the world is this country going to meet the AI demand?” Hopper said this morning. “[How] are we going to meet the advanced manufacturing demand for power unless we have all the resources at our disposal?”
Hopper explained that while Republicans claim the industry should be able to stand on its own without federal subsidies, the proposed changes are so severe that they would affect projects currently in development.
“The reality is that so many of these projects and things moving forward had factored in this federal policy into their economics,” she said. “So changing something within 60 days…it’s just not fiscally responsible. So you know, there are pathways to ending some of these subsidies, but certainly this timetable, it does not work.”
Quick reminder: The House-passed reconciliation bill ends technology-neutral tax credits for all projects unless they are able to start construction within 60 days of the bill’s enactment and are placed in service by the end of 2028. It also denies subsidies for expenditures for certain wind and solar leasing arrangements.
FEMA CHIEF UNAWARE OF U.S. HURRICANE SEASON? The acting head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, David Richardson, told agency staff during a Monday meeting that he was unaware the country has a hurricane season, according to multiple reports. Reuters reported that employees were unclear whether Richardson was joking and worried about his lack of FEMA knowledge.
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that Richardson’s comment was a joke. The U.S. hurricane season started on Sunday.
Read more by Washington Examiner’s Annabella Rosciglione here.
GLOBAL AIRLINES MAINTAIN 2050 NET ZERO TARGETS: Global airlines concluded a two-day summit in New Delhi, maintaining their target of net zero emissions by 2050, Reuters reports.
Four years ago, the aviation industry committed to achieve net zero emissions and planned to rely on sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to meet the goal. But the supply of SAF has yet to meet fuel needs, raising doubts about whether the target can be met.
The International Air Transport Association, which represents 350 airlines, has urged its members to maintain and meet its commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
IATA did not engage in the debate on whether the industry could meet the net zero target, Reuters said. Instead, the group accused energy companies of imposing arbitrary charges in Europe and aircraft manufacturers for failing to deliver efficient jets on time.
“We still have time to get there, but we do need to see more action on the part of all of the partners in the value chain to make sure that the industry can get there,” said IATA Director General Willie Walsh.
Walsh said there had not been any discussion about delaying the target at the summit.
LATEST ON CANADA WILDFIRES: Wildfires in Alberta have threatened Canada oil production, but recent rainfall has helped to slow down the wildfire spread, Bloomberg reports.
Bloomberg wrote that, as of today, 462,000 barrels of crude oil in Alberta were within 10 kilometers of the wildfires, down from the 470,000 barrels at risk on Monday. About 350,000 barrels of daily output were taken offline due to the wildfires.
Canada is suffering a series of wildfires. As of today, Alberta has 56 wildfires, Manitoba 26, and Saskatchewan 17. In total, there are 104 wildfires that are out of control in Canada, which have forced thousands to evacuate.
Smoke from the Canadian wildfires has impacted air quality in several states, including Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin. Take a look at where the smoke will move throughout the week here.
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