WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY: Good afternoon and happy Thursday, readers! Congress has sent another bill to the president’s desk, this one reversing an offshore drilling rule implemented under the Biden administration. 

Meanwhile, the Trump administration is seeking more ways to crack down on Iran and its energy sector, potentially bringing some vessels to a standstill while transporting crude. 

Recommended Stories

• Daily on Energy, presented by Advanced Energy United: SCOTUS takes up nuclear waste storage, US exits JETP, and fact-checking Trump
• Daily on Energy, presented by Advanced Energy United: San Francisco wins at SCOTUS, tariffs fallout, and Republicans against offshore drilling
• Daily on Energy, presented by Advanced Energy United: More CRAs this week, OPEC+ hikes production, and wildfire news

Keep reading to find out what electricity regulators have to say about the president’s energy tariffs on Canada and how they might affect the U.S. national grid.  

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.

HOUSE VOTES TO REPEAL OFFSHORE DRILLING RULE: The House voted to undo a regulation requiring oil and gas lessees and operators to submit archaeological reports for exploration or development on the Outer Continental Shelf. 

The legislation: The House lawmakers voted 221 to 202 to pass the resolution, offered by Rep. Mike Ezell of Mississippi, to overturn the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s Protection of Marine Archaeological Resources. Nine Democrats voted in favor of repealing the regulation. 

The rule was implemented during the Biden administration last September. The regulation aimed to protect and identify archaeological resources on the Outer Continental Shelf before oil and gas operations can take place. The rule required a survey to be conducted of the area by a qualified marine archaeologist that meets the Department of Interior’s standards.

However, Republicans argued that the rule blocks domestic energy production and burdens oil and gas lessees with costly surveys.

“The Biden administration steamrolled the American energy sector with burdensome regulations on U.S. oil and gas production, driving up costs and stifling growth,” Ezell said in a statement earlier this month.

The Senate last week voted to overturn the regulation with three Democrats voting in favor. Both chambers reversed the rule using the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to bypass the filibuster and take a simple majority vote in the House and Senate to overturn recently implemented rules. 

Republicans in the last two weeks have voted on bills through the CRA process to undo many of the Biden administration’s climate and energy policies. Today’s CRA bill will now go to the White House for President Donald Trump to sign. 

Read more by Maydeen here. 

‘YOU SHALL NOT PASS’ – UNITED STATES WEIGHS STOPPING OIL TANKERS AT SEA TO FURTHER CRACK DOWN ON IRAN: As part of the Trump administration’s maximum-pressure campaign to reduce Iran’s exports of crude to zero, officials are reportedly considering physically halting vessels at sea for inspections. 

The details: Six sources familiar with the matter confirmed to Reuters that the administration is looking for ways to stop and inspect tankers carrying Iranian oil at various chokepoints in a number of passages, such as the Malacca Strait. 

The goal of the plan appears to be focused on delaying delivery of crude oil to refiners across the globe – most notably in India and China – while also exposing what parties and countries may be involved in the transportation of the crude, opening the door for more sanctions.  

The administration is reportedly looking into whether these stops and inspections would be able to be conducted through the Proliferation Security Initiative, which has been signed by over 100 governments since 2003. John Bolton told Reuters the U.S. “would be fully justified” to use this initiative to further curb Iranian oil exports, even though it was first launched to stop trafficking of weapons of mass destruction. 

Key quote: “You don’t have to sink ships or arrest people to have that chilling effect that this is just not worth the risk,” one source told Reuters.  “The delay in delivery … instills uncertainty in that illicit trade network.”

ADMINISTRATION ROLLS BACK PLAN TO SHUTTER BUILDING MANAGING NUCLEAR WASTE SITE: Just days ago, the Trump administration was poised to close a critical Department of Energy building in New Mexico, used for managing the only operating deep geological repository for nuclear waste in the world. After a recent report brought the plans to light, the administration began to backtrack. 

The original plans: Sources confirmed to NOTUS on Monday that the General Services Administration (GSA) was attempting to end the lease for the Skeen-Whitlock Building in Carlsbad, New Mexico. The lease termination appeared to be a part of the administration’s and Department of Government Efficiency’s efforts to shrink the federal government and cut unnecessary waste. 

However, to many, this building was far from unnecessary. Democratic Rep. Gabe Vasquez, who represents the region, told NOTUS that the decision was “completely backwards.” “I just don’t get what the administration is doing,” Vasquez said. “They’re telling folks to return to work when at the same time they’re closing critical offices at a nuclear waste repository.”

Switching gears: Just three days after the NOTUS report dropped, the administration changed its mind. A letter obtained by the outlet via Vasquez’s office revealed that GSA was revoking the termination request. It was not immediately clear if the agency had explained why it reversed its decision so quickly. 

A critical facility: Operations have been ongoing at the Skeen-Whitlock Building since the late 1990s, primarily for the Waste Isolation Pilot Program waste site. This site stores more than 46 million gallons of nuclear waste on thick salt beds more than 2,000 feet underground. The site stores nuclear waste from across the country. Had GSA moved forward with closing the building, NOTUS reported, it would make it increasingly difficult for staffers to conduct drills, emergency responses, and other operations overseeing the waste site. 

REGULATORS WARN TRUMP TARIFFS THREATEN GRID SECURITY: Trump’s tariffs imposed this week – particularly those on Canada – pose a risk to energy stability in both the U.S. and Canada, regulators are now warning.

The details: As Canada is the largest source of U.S. energy imports, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation told the Financial Times this week that additional tariffs or strains on trade could create a “big problem.” 

“If some of the sabre-rattling around ‘turning off exports’ occurs, it could create a significant resource adequacy problem for the Canadian provinces that benefit from US exports as well the [US] states along the border that benefit from Canadian imports,” NERC CEO Jim Robb told the outlet, referring to threats made by Canadian officials to halt all exports of electricity to U.S. customers along the border. 

The Energy Information Administration has estimated that roughly only 1% of the electricity generated by Canada and the U.S. respectively is traded between the two countries. But this small percentage is vital for supporting and balancing the grids already facing strain from increased energy demands. 

PLUS…RISKS TO GLOBAL CLIMATE MITIGATION EFFORTS: Some western allies have warned that the risks aren’t limited to North America. 

The warning: Brazil’s Environment Minister Marina Silva told reporters today that a global trade war sparked by Trump’s tariffs on Canada and Mexico, and broader tariffs expected to hit the European Union and possibly other regions in the coming weeks, could stifle international climate mitigation efforts. 

“Multiple factors are worrisome for climate action, such as wars increasing defense spending, and trade tariffs,” Silva said, indicating that this could cause nations to divert funding away from their climate targets. Silva insisted that Brazil, which will be hosting the UN Climate Change Conference COP30 later this year, will remain committed to global climate action through “multilateralism” with nations and regions like China and the EU. 

U.K. SAYS THE WORLD MUST CONTINUE WORKING ON REDUCING EMISSIONS: The United Kingdom’s climate envoy said the world must continue to work on reducing greenhouse gas emissions despite the U.S. absences from international climate talks, Reuters reports. 

Trump on his first day in office withdrew the U.S. from the United Nations’ Paris Agreement. The international group vowed to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. 

“Around the world people are noting that the U.S. has pulled out of Paris, but we’ve got to carry on,” Rachel Kyte told Reuters “The science hasn’t changed, no other country has changed its position … the direction of travel is the same.”

The Trump administration continues to step away from international climate groups and meetings. Recently, the administration stopped U.S. scientists from participating in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The U.S. is also reportedly withdrawing from the Just Energy Transition Partnership, which helps developing countries transition to clean energy. 

“(Britain’s) energy security … food security, and the well being of the British people is entirely linked to the (world’s) ability … to manage this climate crisis,” Kyte said.

“So it’s regrettable that the United States is out … but we’re moving ahead,” she said.

LNG EXPORTER SHARES PLUNGE DESPITE FAVOR FROM THE WHITE HOUSE: One of the largest liquefied natural gas exporters in the U.S., Venture Global, saw its shares plummet in early trading after reporting a dip in revenue in the fourth-quarter of last year. 

The details: Shares of Venture Global have rapidly dropped since the company went public in January, plummeting by around 25% early Thursday, according to Barron’s. The LNG industry has received massive support from the White House and president since the Republican won the November election, with Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum scheduled to speak at Venture Global’s Louisiana plant today. 

At the same time, though, the company has failed to meet investor expectations. Before going public, Venture Global had been seeking a valuation of more than $100 billion. Thursday’s fall in stock has since given the company a market cap of around $25 billion, Barron’s reported.

Low earnings: The drop in shares comes as Venture Global reported a decline in its revenue and projected lower earnings than expected for this year. The company recently said it saw lower LNG sales and exports in the fourth quarter of 2024, with exports dropping by 18% and sales declining by 13%, according to the Financial Times. 

Meanwhile, Venture Global reported that it will see adjusted earnings of between $6.8 billion and $7.4 billion in 2025 – dramatically lower than the previous projections of around $9.3 billion, Barron’s reported. 

ICYMI – SENATE DEMOCRATS DEMAND ANSWERS ON ZELDIN’S PLAN TO CUT EPA WORKFORCE: Democratic senators on the Environment and Public Works Committee are demanding answers from Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin on plans to slash the agency’s workforce or spending by 65%. 

Committee Ranking Member Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse and Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks sent a letter to Zeldin yesterday asking him to clarify his plans to cut 65% of the agency workforce or spending. 

Last week, Trump said Zeldin is thinking of laying off 65% of the agency’s employees. He said that many EPA employees have failed to do their jobs or didn’t exist to begin with. But a White House spokesperson clarified the next day, stating Zeldin will look to cut 65% in spending. 

The Democrats argued that cutting spending or the workforce would have a “devastating” effect on the agency. The senators also noted that any efforts to cut spending would violate congressional authority. They laid out a series of questions for Zeldin and demanded answers by March 10. 

RUNDOWN

Inside Climate News The Rights of Nature Become a Rallying Point Against an Ascendant Mining Industry

Canary Media California’s rooftop-solar debate is raging again

Forbes Renewables Will Best Fossil Fuels Over Time Despite Trump’s Efforts