WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY: Good afternoon and happy Wednesday, readers! It’s been a busy day on Capitol Hill with permitting reform and the Trump administration’s recent operations in Venezuela on the docket.
Republican and Democratic senators were quite chummy during a hearing on permitting reform this morning, though it remains unclear how quickly the chamber could put a bill to a vote 🏛️. Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota gave his optimal timeline to Callie – check it out below.
President Donald Trump’s pressure campaign on Cuba is growing, with Mexico pausing all shipments of oil to the island 🇲🇽🛢️🇨🇺. We’ll be tracking to see how the disruptions will impact global oil markets throughout the rest of the week.
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.
SENATE PICKS UP PERMITTING: Permitting reform is back on the table for the Senate, and both parties are in agreement that passing meaningful legislation is a priority.
There was clear bipartisan support for technology-neutral permitting reform during an Environment and Public Works Committee hearing this morning, with Democratic and Republican senators both highlighting the potential for job creation and energy growth if a bill is passed.
Republican Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota even told Callie after the hearing that he believed Republicans would be able to put forward “good language” regarding permitting “rather soon.”
“When I say rather soon, I mean, I don’t think we’re that far from it,” Cramer said. “Now, could we have a markup by this spring? I think we could.”
Democrats, however, still won’t officially play ball.
Ranking member Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island reiterated his concerns from late last year that the Trump administration may fail to fairly execute any bipartisan package passed, continuing its efforts to halt renewable energy projects. He affirmed that any negotiations involving him, as well as Energy and Natural Resources Committee ranking member Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, are still paused.
“The responsibility for resuscitating permitting reform rests now upon the executive branch,” Whitehouse said.
WHO KNEW WHAT WHEN ON VENEZUELA? Secretary of State Marco Rubio is now denying that oil executives knew that the Trump administration would be forcibly ousting former Venezuela dictator Nicolas Maduro, contrary to the president’s own remarks.
The details: Rubio testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today on the United States’ operations in Venezuela earlier this month. During the hearing, Maryland Democrat Sen. Chris Van Hollen pressed Rubio on what exactly oil companies knew ahead of Maduro’s removal.
While Rubio said executives found out “the same time everybody else did,” Van Hollen was quick to point out that President Donald Trump indicated otherwise.
Just one day after the capture of Maduro, Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he spoke to oil companies “before and after” the operation, adding that the companies “were absolutely aware that we were thinking about doing something.”
When asked if he was with the president for any of the conversations about the possibility of ousting Maduro, Rubio said it “never happened.”
“The oil executives were not involved whatsoever in any of the planning on this matter,” Rubio said. “I think all of those executives learned about this operation the same time everybody else did.”
MEXICO PAUSES OIL SHIPMENTS TO CUBA: Mexico has paused oil shipments to Cuba amid the president’s increased pressure for regime change.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum claimed that her country’s move to suspend oil shipments to Cuba was due to fluctuations in oil supplies and unrelated to U.S. policy.
But Cuba heavily relies on oil from Mexico and Venezuela, both of which are now cut off.
Mexico’s oil pause comes as Trump continues to weigh his options to force regime change in the Cuban government.
Politico reported that the administration is considering imposing a total blockade on oil imports to Cuba. In addition, the Wall Street Journal reported last week that the administration is seeking Cuban government insiders willing to negotiate to push the current regime out by the end of the year.
Key quote: A senior administration official told the Washington Examiner that the “United States appreciates President Sheinbaum’s pragmatic decision to align with the free world and isolate the Cuban Regime.”
“The Cuban regime is failing, and the Cuban people deserve an elected government that runs the country competently and refuses to host malign foreign forces from the other side of the globe,” the official said.
Read more by Maydeen here.
Also: Rubio said in his Senate testimony today that the U.S. would “love” to see regime change in Cuba.
WINTER STORM WATCH: Frigid temperatures continue to linger across the country, as some states in the mid-South and mid-Atlantic prepare to be hit by another snowstorm this coming weekend.
Temperatures in the lower 48 were so cold this morning that even the city of Juneau, Alaska was warmer than parts of Florida at around 7 a.m. ET, according to Fox38 Orlando metrologist Noah Bergren. The cold air is expected to stick around through next week.
Less than a week after millions were hit by Winter Storm Fern, several states on the East Coast could see more snow and ice in just a matter of days.
Projections are still subject to change, but as of earlier this afternoon, the National Weather Service said a coastal low pressure system is forecast to form over the Gulf Coast, potentially resulting in more snowfall. The Carolinas and Virginia are expected to feel the most immediate impacts. AccuWeather warned today that, for cities like Charlotte and Raleigh, it could end up being the biggest snowstorm they’ve seen in decades.
The snowstorm would put some cities, including Washington, D.C., in a tight position, as officials struggle to clear the ice and snow that fell last weekend. Earlier this morning, D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen revealed that many of the District’s smaller plows were damaged by heavy ice from the storm, making it more difficult for the city to clear neighborhood streets.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION QUIETLY OVERHAULS NUCLEAR SAFETY: The Trump administration has reportedly moved to soften nuclear safety regulations for new experimental reactors overseen by the Department of Energy, doing so out of the eye of the public.
Documents obtained by NPR reveal that the Trump administration made sweeping changes to nuclear safety regulations, in an apparent effort to accelerate the development and deployment of new advanced test reactor designs.
Quick reminder: Last year, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said his agency would have at least three small test nuclear reactors built and hitting criticality status by Independence Day 2026. Ten companies and 11 projects are vying to reach this deadline, developing their reactors through the Energy Department’s reactor pilot program.
The reactors are not for commercial use, as the agency is not permitted to license commercial reactors under the Atomic Energy Act. However, many are hopeful that the program will pave the way for similar projects to receive regulatory approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as they expand their operations.
What’s new: Over the fall and winter, the Energy Department reportedly made changes to departmental orders, which detail requirements for how a test reactor can operate, including its safety guidelines, environmental protections, security details and much more. The changes reportedly resulted in more than 750 pages being cut, NPR reports.
In the new orders, the agency has reportedly softened protections related to groundwater and the environment, raised the amount of radiation an employee can be exposed to before an accident investigation is launched, and removed requirements to issue body armor to security police officers.
Why it matters: These changes were not made public, as the agency is legally permitted to change its own orders without a public comment period. However, it comes at a time when concerns have repeatedly been raised about the industry’s ability to trust in the federal government as it rapidly expands nuclear energy in the U.S.
“I would argue that the Department of Energy relaxing its nuclear safety and security standards in secret is not the best way to engender the kind of public trust that’s going to be needed for nuclear to succeed more broadly,” Christopher Hanson, who was chairman of the NRC from 2021 to 2025, before being fired by Trump, told NPR.
TRUMP BACKS YEAR-ROUND E15 SALES: In Iowa, Trump said he supports year-round sale of E15 ethanol after lawmakers failed to reach an agreement on a provision to achieve that.
“In the campaign, I promised to support E15 all year round,” Trump said during a speech in Iowa, according to The Hill. He added that he is “trusting” Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana and Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota to “find a deal that works.”
He added that Congress “will be sending me a bill very shortly, supporting year-round E15 to my desk very quickly, and I will sign it without delay.”
Recently, Republicans were unable to agree to include a provision in the spending bill that would allow year-round sales of E15 ethanol, a fuel blend containing 10.5% to 15% ethanol blended with gasoline that has been restricted due to smog concerns. Lawmakers, instead, decided to establish “E-15 Rural Domestic Energy Council” that would negotiate the sale of the fuel blend.
The president’s remarks place pressure on lawmakers to reach an agreement, as Republicans are divided. The fuel blend is strongly supported by farmers, but opposed by oil and gas groups because it could disrupt refinery operations.
ICYMI – FOURTH OFFSHORE WIND PROJECTS WINS IN COURT AMID TRUMP EFFORTS: A federal judge yesterday evening allowed the Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind project in Massachusetts to resume construction after being paused by the Trump administration.
U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy ordered a stay on the Vineyard Wind 1 stop-work order imposed by the Trump administration in December. The judge’s decision marks the fourth court ruling that has favored an offshore wind project that was told to stop work by the Department of the Interior.
As a reminder: Last month, the DOI announced it would pause five offshore wind projects along the East Coast: Vineyard Wind 1, Revolution Wind, Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Commercial, Sunrise Wind, and Empire Wind 1. The department said the pause was related to national security concerns, arguing that the wind turbine blade and reflective towers could cause radar interference or obscure targets.
The pause last month was part of the Trump administration’s latest efforts to block offshore wind energy projects. Judges have recently made similar rulings this month to the projects blocked by the DOI’s order, namely for the Empire Wind, Revolution Wind Project, and Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind projects.
Read more by Maydeen here.
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