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.

EUROPE’S JET FUEL COUNTDOWN: Your “Euro summer” plans could be in trouble as European airlines are running out of fuel. 

International Energy Agency chief Fatih Birol told the Associated Press earlier today that Europe might just have “six weeks or so [of] jet fuel left.” The longer the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, the worse the economic effects of the war will be, he warned, saying “everybody is going to suffer.” 

“I can tell you soon we will hear the news that some of the flights from city A to city B might be canceled as a result of lack of jet fuel,” Birol said of Europe. 

WHITE HOUSE LOOKS TO INDUSTRY TO EASE OIL STRAINS: The White House is reportedly upping its pressure on oil and gas firms to increase production levels in its latest bid to lower crude prices.

The details: Four people with direct knowledge of the conversations told Politico that Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum planned to speak with executives from Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Occidental Petroleum, Continental Resources, and other major firms today over the phone. 

During the call, Wright and Burgum reportedly plan to ask the executives to increase their drilling operations. Wright first made a bid to oil and gas firms during CERAWeek last month, when he said high prices brought on by the war should encourage producers to increase their operations. 

The industry’s position: It’s a steep ask from the administration, as drilling new wells is a months-long process that costs millions of dollars. Most drillers and producers look for signs of consistent pricing within the markets before making significant changes to their investment decisions or operations in the short-term. And, as prices have been on a rollercoaster around the $100 per barrel line for the last six weeks, executives have already said that they’re wary of drilling more. 

In the latest Dallas Fed survey of oil and gas executives, released last month, roughly half of the exploration and production executives surveyed said the number of wells they expect to drill in 2026 is unchanged.  

Even Chevron executives have told Callie that their plan is to keep production stable over the next couple of years. Kim McHugh, vice president of Chevron’s shale and tight base business, said that in the DJ Basin alone, the company plans to keep production at around 400,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day over the next five years. 

“It’s not about volume, it’s about what we can create, the cash flow that we can create with the volume,” McHugh said.

SPEAKING OF PRICES: Oil prices remain elevated today, but still below the $100 per barrel line. Around 3 p.m. EDT, international benchmark Brent Crude was up 4.38% and selling at $99.09 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate was also up 3.22% and priced at $94.23. 

Meanwhile, gasoline prices have steadily fallen in recent days, with the national average sitting at $4.093 per gallon as of today. This is down from $4.166 per gallon one week ago. 

President Donald Trump touted this small dip in gasoline prices, insisting to reporters earlier today that prices at the pump are “not very high.” 

“If you look at what they were supposed to be in order to get rid of a nuclear weapon with the danger that entails,” Trump said. “So the gas prices have come down very much over the last three, four days.”

EPA INTRODUCES WATER REUSE ACTION PLAN FOR DATA CENTERS: The Environmental Protection Agency relaunched an initiative to utilize recycled water to power key industries, such as microchip fabrication facilities and data centers. 

The initiative, called the Water Reuse Action Plan (WRAP) 2.0, is a partnership with states and local governments to promote water recycling. WRAP was introduced in the first Trump administration. The initiative comes as the administration has supported the expansion of data centers, which demand a significant amount of water for cooling. 

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said that water reuse is a top topic in conversations with leaders in the artificial intelligence industry. 

These tech companies are “very aware and very proud about their efforts to lean into water reuse because I think they believe this is the only way that their project is feasible for many reasons – from the economics to the public vetting of a project,” Zeldin said.

ZELDIN DEFENDS ENDANGERMENT FINDING REPEAL: Meanwhile, Zeldin said he is “confident” with the decision the agency made to overturn the 2009 Endangerment Finding. 

Zeldin, spoke at the Semafor World Economy 2026 conference earlier today, where he defended his agency’s move to repeal the landmark climate finding that greenhouse gas emissions pose a threat to public health and are subject to regulation. 

The Trump EPA has argued that the agency does not have the authority to regulate emissions under the Clean Air Act. 

“I am very confident in the decision that we made,” Zeldin said. “When you look at Section 202 of the Clean Air Act, it doesn’t say anything about combating global climate change.” 

The agency’s move has been met with legal challenges by states, environmentalists, and health groups. Zeldin was asked whether the agency was prepared to defend its decision if litigation reaches the Supreme Court. 

“Every single litigation that we are involved with, we instantly lean into defending the merit of the decisions that we make,” Zeldin said. 

Along with repealing the finding, the EPA also eliminated tailpipe emission standards for light-, medium-, and heavy-duty vehicles and engines for model years 2012 to 2027 and beyond. It also ended fuel-saving car features, such as the stop-start option. The administration claims that consumers strongly dislike the car feature. 

AN UPDATE ON FERC’S EXPECTED DATA CENTER RULING: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission announced this morning that it plans to issue a ruling in just a few months on how large loads like data centers can connect to the already straining grid.

Quick reminder: In October, Energy Secretary Wright directed FERC to initiate a rulemaking process to accelerate the connection of large loads to the grid. Wright offered several recommendations, such as requiring loads to pay full network upgrade costs. At the time, Wright gave FERC until April 30, 2026 to issue a final ruling. 

Ruling delayed: FERC has said it will take action by June 2026 on the ruling. FERC chairman Laura Swett told reporters that the order of intent regarding the ruling demonstrates how much the commission and staff has been working on this issue.

“This is an all hands on deck effort,” Swett said. “FERC staff has been working tirelessly around the clock since it started, it is clear that we need a little more time to get it right for the rest of the country. And I personally am committed to delivering bold action, and in working with my colleagues to do just that.” 

Some pushback: FERC has never asserted jurisdiction over retail load interconnections, which have historically been regulated by the states. Industry groups, including the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, cautioned FERC against regulating large loads like data centers, saying it would interfere with the states’ ability to set retail rates. 

Former FERC chairman Mark Christie has also advised against using federal jurisdiction for data center interconnection, saying it could threaten to raise retail consumer costs and reliability. 

“FERC has never even tried to regulate retail load interconnections and should leave it to the states, who have done it for decades, know what they are doing from experience and are perfectly capable of meeting these challenges,” Christie wrote in an Utility Dive opinion. 

Christie’s opposition on the issue has been known for months. As the Trump administration has prioritized building out data centers quickly to lead in the AI race, Christie was replaced as FERC chairman last summer.  

INTERIOR RESPONDS TO TOTALENERGIES DEAL PUSHBACK: As we touched on yesterday, the Department of the Interior is facing criticism from a former agency solicitor over its buyout agreement with TotalEnergies that killed two offshore wind farms along the East Coast. 

A department spokesperson defended the deal when asked for comment, telling Daily on Energy that the agency is “advancing American energy through reliable energy sources that make sense.” 

“Every decision the Department and administration makes is with American wallets, families, and communities in mind. The Trump administration is sending a clear signal that we’re refocusing on energy you can count on; prioritizing baseload power over unreliable, unsecure renewable sources,” the spokesperson said. 

In case you forgot: Former agency solicitor Tony Irish has accused Interior of breaking the law through its settlement agreement with the French energy major, as it is paying the company through the Justice Department’s Judgment Fund. There are strict rules on when agencies can access the funds, including to settle imminent litigation. Irish has claimed the agreement does not meet these requirements, and therefore does not have the basis of a pre-litigation settlement. 

Regarding these allegations the spokesperson said, “As for the former disgruntled employee, his claims about this project are not just outdated, they’re based on assumptions and not facts. He’s been out of the loop for so long that he can’t offer a credible perspective.”

SENATE OVERTURNS MINNESOTA MINING BAN: Senators voted to pass a measure that would lift a mining ban in northern Minnesota imposed by the Biden administration. 

The Senate passed a Congressional Review Act resolution, 50-49, that would cancel the Biden administration’s 20-year mining ban on 225,504 acres in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, near the Canadian border. 

The resolution passed the House in January and will now be sent to Trump’s desk for his signature. 

The Boundary Waters are located within the Superior National Forest, which contains reserves of copper, nickel, and cobalt. The bill lifts the mining ban, essentially opening up the land for future mining projects. 

Democrats argued that Republicans are misusing the CRA, stating it is not intended to overturn public land orders. 

Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota said today’s Senate vote is using an “unprecedented mechanism.” 

She added, “Now, for the first time, the CRA is being used to rescind a public land order that bans mining in the Boundary Waters for 20 years.”

GOP ‘no’ votes: Sens. Susan Collins and Thom Tillis voted with Democrats against the resolution. 

Read more by Maydeen about the CRA measure here. 

ICYMI – WRIGHT SAYS REVIEW OF BIDEN-ERA PROJECTS COMPLETE: Energy Secretary Wright said yesterday afternoon that the Department of Energy’s review of Biden administration approved projects has been completed – and most projects are moving forward. 

“We did a rigorous business evaluation, unfortunately, of a lot of projects that didn’t even have a business plan or a credible pathway to success,” Wright said in a hearing on the 2027 fiscal year budget. “But I am happy to say that effort has finally come to a completion.” 

He said that the majority of projects passed the administration’s review, later clarifying that roughly 80% of the more than 2,200 projects evaluated have moved forward. 

Some of these projects are moving forward as they were started under the Biden administration, while other deals are being modified. 

He acknowledged that the agency made some mistakes in its review and was willing to reengage on various projects as needed. Several projects that the administration previously said it was terminating funding for have been named on the list of projects that will be retained or modified by the agency.

The full list of the projects that have moved through the agency’s review can be found here. 

RUNDOWN 

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