The United States of America’s President-elect Donald Trump is set to create a National Energy Council that he says will establish American “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 climate change.
Core Reporters report that the energy council is to be led by North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Trump’s choice to head the Interior Department will be key in Trump’s pledge to “drill, drill, drill” and sell more oil and other energy sources to allies in Europe and around the globe.
Trump said, the new council will be granted sweeping authority over federal agencies involved in energy permitting, production, generation, distribution, regulation and transportation, with a mandate to cut bureaucratic red tape, enhance private sector investments and focus on innovation instead of “totally unnecessary regulation,”
We understand Trump’s energy wishes are likely to run into real-world limits. For one, U.S. oil production under Biden is already at record levels. The federal government cannot force companies to drill for more oil, and production increases could lower prices and reduce profits.
AP reports that a call for energy dominance is a term Trump also used in his first term as president, “is an opportunity, not a requirement,’’ for the oil industry to move forward on drilling projects under terms that are likely to be more favorable to industry than those offered by Biden, said energy analyst Kevin Book.
Staffing the administration: Here are the people Trump has picked for key positions so far. Plus, a look at recess appointments and how Trump could use them to fill his Cabinet.
Follow all of our coverage as Donald Trump assembles his second administration.
Trump achievement in energy dominance will “comes down to decisions by private companies, based on how they see supply-demand balances in the global marketplace,’’ said Book, managing partner at ClearView Energy Partners, a Washington research firm. Don’t expect an immediate influx of new oil rigs dotting the national landscape, he said.
Trump’s bid to boost oil supplies, and lower U.S. prices is complicated by his threat this week to impose 25% import tariffs on Canada and Mexico, two of the largest sources of U.S. oil imports. The U.S. oil industry warned the tariffs could raise prices and even harm national security.
“Canada and Mexico are our top energy trading partners, and maintaining the free flow of energy products across our borders is critical for North American energy security and U.S. consumers,” said Scott Lauermann, speaking for the American Petroleum Institute, the oil industry’s top lobbying group.
American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, which represents U.S. refineries, also opposes potential tariffs, saying in a statement that “American refiners depend on crude oil from Canada and Mexico to produce the affordable, reliable fuels consumers count on every day.”
