By Jarrett Renshaw
(Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump issued orders within hours of his inauguration on Monday aimed at boosting the country's record oil and gas production and ending former President Joe Biden's climate agenda.
Here are some of the things Trump did on his first day:
POWER CRISIS
Trump has declared a national energy emergency, intended to give him the authority to reduce environmental restrictions on energy infrastructure and projects and ease permits for new transmission and pipeline infrastructure.
“It allows you to do whatever you have to do to win this crisis,” Trump told reporters as he signed the order. “And we have that kind of anxiety.”
Earlier in the day, he explained the reason for the announcement: “The problem of inflation is caused by a large excess and the increase in energy prices, and that is why today I will declare a national energy emergency. We will drive the child, the drill.”
He previously said that the increased demand for electricity from the technology industry, largely to fuel artificial intelligence, required a major restructuring of the grid.
LNG PERMITS
Trump ordered the US to resume the processing of export permit applications for new projects with liquids supplying Asia and Europe, reversing the suspension of Biden's suspension at the beginning of 2024 to study the environmental and economic impact of exports.
US exports of fossil fuels set a record in 2023 and the country is the largest exporter of the product. But the freeze on new export permits has created uncertainty for many projects in the works.
Louisiana plants awaiting approval include Commonwealth LNG, Venture Global's CP2, Cheniere Energy's (NYSE: ) expansion at its Sabine Pass facility and Power transmission (NYSE:)'s Lake Charles terminal. In Texas, the second phase of Sempra's Port Arthur LNG project is awaiting approval.
GOOD PARIS
Trump has ordered the US to withdraw from the Paris climate accord, an international agreement to combat climate change, repeating a move he made in his first term.
Trump has called climate change a hoax, and says the deal puts the United States at risk of competing with regional rivals like China.
“I am withdrawing immediately from the one-sided Paris climate agreement,” he said. “The United States will not destroy our industries while China pollutes with impunity.”
AIR IN THE CELL
Trump has canceled new offshore wind leases pending environmental and economic reviews, saying the wind facilities are ugly, expensive and dangerous to wildlife.
“We're not going to do the air thing,” he said.
A White House press release said Trump issued an executive action to freeze offshore wind leasing in all US areas on the outer continental shelf pending an environmental and economic review.
The order is not expected to impact existing US offshore wind projects being developed by companies including Orsted (CSE: ), Avangrid (NYSE: ), Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, and Dominion.
Biden saw wind power as an important part of his plan to decarbonize the energy sector.
EV TARGETED
Trump is eyeing electric cars, revoking a 2021 executive order signed by Biden that sought to ensure that half of all new cars sold in the United States by 2030 were electric.
Biden's 50% target, which was not legally binding, won the support of American and foreign automakers.
Trump said in an executive order that he was halting the transfer of unused government funds to vehicle charging stations from a $5 billion fund, called for an end to the moratorium on states adopting zero-emission vehicle laws by 2035 and said his administration would consider ending EV tax credits. .
DRILL, BABY, DRILL
Trump has signed an executive order reversing Biden's efforts to ban oil drilling in the Arctic and large swaths of the US coast, according to the White House.
Trump also rescinded a 2023 memo that banned oil drilling on 16 million acres (6.5 million hectares) in the Arctic, the White House announced.
It is unclear whether the moves will be enough to attract large operators, who have fled the region in recent years due to high development costs.
Biden this month blocked new offshore oil and gas development along several US coasts before Trump took office.
FILL THE STOCKPILE
Trump said he intends to fill the strategic reserves “to the top”.
That likely refers to the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the nation's stockpile, designed as a buffer against shocks.
After the invasion of Ukraine, Biden sold more than 180 million barrels of crude oil in storage, a record amount.
The sell-off helped keep gasoline prices down, but the stockpile fell to its lowest level in 40 years.
“We're going to lower prices, replenish our strategic reserves, go higher, and send American power around the world,” Trump said.
He will look to Republican lawmakers to give him money to buy oil in the coming weeks.