Trump declares national energy emergency

POLITICS: On his first day in office, President Trump declares a national energy emergency to give himself broad powers to encourage fossil fuel production to meet growing power demand, though the move could face legal challenges. (The Guardian, The Hill)

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ALSO:

• Trump withdraws the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement, as he had in his previous term, and rescinds Biden administration efforts to center environmental justice in federal decisions. (Associated Press, Axios)
• Trump signs a series of additional executive orders directing government agencies to review Biden administration environmental policies and reverse or rewrite them if possible. (Washington Post)
• All of Trump’s day-one energy and environmental actions echo moves Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has taken in the president’s home state. (USA Today)

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ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• Trump rescinds the Biden administration’s nonbinding 2021 goal of making half of new vehicle sales in 2030 electric, which had directed automakers’ investments and won their public support. (The Guardian)
• U.S. electric vehicle sales growth slowed in 2024 largely due to speed bumps for Tesla, but the industry remains on track for expansion even if the Trump administration shrinks or ends EV purchase incentives. (Inside Climate News)
• The number of publicly available electric vehicle chargers doubled to 207,000 during former President Biden’s term, but still lags the 1.2 million needed by 2030 to support anticipated EV sales. (Axios)

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WIND: Trump orders a stop to new permitting for onshore and offshore wind projects and directs the Interior Department to find out whether it can end or amend existing leases. (E&E News)

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OIL & GAS: Trump issues executive orders aimed at spurring more oil & gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and revoking policies that “burden the development of domestic energy resources.” (The Hill)

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OVERSIGHT: President Trump names a longtime Virginia utility regulator to lead the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. (Cardinal News)

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SOLAR:

• A 900 MW Texas solar farm uses roughly 3,000 sheep to maintain vegetation at its 4,000-acre site, illustrating a broader trend pairing livestock with solar energy development across the U.S. (Associated Press)
• Analysts say a 1,200 MW solar-plus-storage installation under development in Oregon is an example of a trend toward larger clean energy projects. (Canary Media)

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CLIMATE: A study shows how fossil fuel companies collaboratively used Twitter to seed doubt about international climate action. (Grist)

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GRID: Illinois lawmakers and advocates are drafting legislation that would allow merchant transmission line developers to access subsidies under the state’s renewable energy credits program to help remove cost barriers for wind and solar developers. (Energy News Network)

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EFFICIENCY: A new report finds utilities in Tennessee and other Southeast states have the lowest energy efficiency ranking of any region in the U.S. (Tennessee Lookout)

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