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.

BREAKING: TRUMP ADMINISTRATION DITCHES GREEN CODES: The Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Agriculture announced minutes ago that they are rescinding a 2024 policy put out by the Biden administration that would require federally backed mortgages to adhere to updated energy efficiency codes. 

The Biden administration had said the stricter codes would apply to about a sixth of all homes built each year, and would yield significant savings for homeowners over time, of about 35%. 

But, the housing industry has fought the policy, saying it adds more than $20,000 to the cost of new homes. 

HUD Secretary Scott Turner said that the Trump administration’s “focus is to facilitate new housing supply and ensure that every American family has a path to homeownership without being sidelined by bureaucratic red tape.”

OH BOY OPEC: The United Arab Emirates is exiting OPEC and the broader OPEC+ in just a matter of days, marking a major blow to the international oil-producing cartel. 

The details: Early this morning, officials said the UAE would be exiting OPEC on May 1 in order to focus on internal interests. Officials said the decision followed a “comprehensive review” of the UAE’s production policy as well as its current and future capacity. 

“During our time in the organisation, we made significant contributions and even greater sacrifices for the benefit of all,” the UAE said in a statement. “However, the time has come to focus our efforts on what our national interest dictates and our commitment to our investors, customers, partners and global energy markets. This is what we will focus on going forward.”

Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei later told Western media outlets that the country decided to leave OPEC now, when the markets are undersupplied and strained from significant oil flow disruptions in the Gulf region, as it would be the least disruptive to other members of the bloc. 

“Our exit at this time is the right time for it, because it will have a minimum impact on the price and it will have a minimum impact on our friends at OPEC and OPEC+,” he told CNBC. 

The UAE has said it hopes to achieve a capacity of 5 million barrels per day by 2027, a goal that would very likely be difficult to achieve when tied to sweeping production limits. As a member of OPEC, the UAE and other nations agree to limit their production to average less than 3 million barrels per day. 

Some reaction: There is widespread agreement that, while shocking, the UAE’s exit from OPEC will not send shockwaves through global markets due to the ongoing war in Iran and effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz. 

However, there are some concerns that significant increases in production from the UAE could contribute to a global supply glut down the line. 

“Gulf countries, including the UAE, will take months to return to pre-war production volumes,” said Simon Flowers, Chairman and Chief Analyst at Wood Mackenzie. “Beyond this year, losing the UAE will compound OPEC’s challenge to balance the market and increases the risk of oversupply weakening prices.”

“By removing a key pillar of centralized production management, the market would become increasingly susceptible to unchecked volatility during periods of extreme price sensitivity or when prices are extremely high or low,” said Simon-Peter Massabni, the head of business development at global asset broker XS.com.

SHELL WARNS SUPPLY DISRUPTIONS COULD DRAG INTO 2027: Speaking of the global crude supply disruption, one oil executive believes supply shortages caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz could stretch into next year. 

“We are talking about roughly 900 million barrels that haven’t been produced in the last couple of months and that’s been replaced essentially by stock drawdown,” Shell CEO Wael Sawan told Bloomberg TV.

He pointed out that many regions are facing relatively low levels of oil and natural gas supply, with conversations about demand curtailment and fuel switching growing. 

Sawan explained that, from Shell’s perspective, supply-demand balances are certain to be “tight” for the coming months, “if not the next year-plus,” due to the Iran war disruptions.  

PRICES AT THE PUMP SOAR TO HIGHEST LEVEL SINCE 2022: Gasoline prices jumped today to the highest level since the war in Iran began, as well as the highest since 2022, with the national average hitting $4.18 per gallon. 

This is a roughly 40% increase from where prices were before the war began, when the national average price of gasoline was around $2.98 per gallon. 

The highest prices have been reported in Washington and California, where AAA found the average prices at the pump sit at $5.51 and $5.97 a gallon respectively. The lowest gasoline prices can be found in Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, and Georgia, where prices remain below $3.70 a gallon. 

Analysts have warned that prices will continue to rise, particularly as oil prices continue to tick up. 

“Oil prices have been climbing again as markets react to renewed geopolitical tensions and the cancellation of talks between the U.S. and Iran,” GasBuddy petroleum analyst Patrick De Haan said yesterday. “As a result, gasoline prices are set to rise further this week, with diesel expected to follow. Many inland states—including those in the Great Lakes and Plains—could see average gas prices climb to their highest levels since 2022…”

As of 2 p.m. EDT today, international benchmark Brent Crude was up 2.45% and selling at $110.88 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate also jumped by 3.82% and was priced at $100.05 per barrel. 

LEE ZELDIN CLASHES WITH DEMOCRATS: Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin sparred with Democrats as he testified yesterday and today on the president’s 2027 budget request.

At his first hearing yesterday, the administrator engaged in a heated exchange with Democratic Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut as she accused the administration of abandoning its responsibility to address climate change. She called the agency’s proposed budget a “climate change denier’s manifesto.” 

Zeldin defended the agency’s actions to overturn the 2009 endangerment finding by pointing to Section 202 of the Clean Air Act, arguing that it does not require the agency to fight climate change. He also cited the Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo case, which overturned the Chevron doctrine allowing courts to no longer defer to the agency’s interpretation of the law. 

DeLauro called Zeldin’s legal arguments “BS” and claimed he “made up a whole lot.” 

These heated exchanges between Zeldin and Democrats continued today at a hearing before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment. Democratic Rep. Troy Carter of Louisiana asked Zeldin to not talk over him during questioning. 

“I’m not going to allow you to speak over me and ignore my questions with prepared scripts,” Carter said. 

“I have very specific questions that require specific answers,” said Carter. “You’ve been a member of Congress before. You know better. Shame on you.”

Zeldin responded to Carter’s comment by stating that when lawmakers “actually meet the hard facts, the reality, and they hear the numbers, they want to cut you off and make sure that you stop reading off the numbers that disprove their false claim.” 

The administrator will go before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee tomorrow. 

INTERIOR APPROVES CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION FOR GEOTHERMAL: The Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management has approved a categorical exclusion to streamline and accelerate the federal permitting process for exploring geothermal energy on public lands. 

The categorical exclusion, which determines that a specific action typically does not have significant environmental impacts and therefore does not require a full environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act, was actually first proposed under the Biden administration. 

Specifically, it applies to geothermal exploration activities that do not exceed 10 acres of total surface disturbance and commit to reclamation of surface disturbances when the intended purpose has been fulfilled. This includes projects that involve searching for evidence of geothermal resources through core drilling, well pads, temperature gradient wells, and temporary roads and trails. 

It does not include the direct testing or production of geothermal resources, which would be subject to broader NEPA reviews. 

“By setting consistent permitting expectations across public lands, we’re giving operators a clear, predictable path to delivering a reliable supply of geothermal energy,” BLM Acting Director Bill Groffy said. “This new categorical exclusion streamlines the process without compromising environmental review or quality standards.”

ICYMI – NOMINEE TO LEAD NPS WITHDRAWS: The White House gave notice yesterday of the withdrawal of the nomination for hospitality executive Scott Socha to lead the National Park Service. Socha said in a statement to The Hill that he withdrew his nomination due to “personal reasons.” 

Socha was nominated in February by the president to lead NPS, which manages hundreds of sites across the country, including national parks, monuments, and other historical sites. 

The park service is currently being led by acting director Jessica Bowron. During President Donald Trump‘s first term, the service was led by a number of acting directors. 

Read more by Maydeen here. 

A PITCH TO CONNECT FUSION TO THE GRID: A fusion energy startup, backed by Bill Gates, is looking to connect the world’s first commercial fusion power plant to the largest grid system in the U.S. in the next few years. 

The details: Commonwealth Fusion Systems announced early this morning that it has submitted an application to PJM Interconnection to connect its first ARC fusion power plant. This is a first-ever request from a grid-scale fusion developer to a major RTO. 

“By becoming the first fusion energy developer to enter a major grid operator’s interconnection queue, we’re demonstrating that when you’re serious about building a power plant in the early 2030s, you act now,” CEO Bob Mumgaard said in a statement. “This is execution.”

Commonwealth Fusion Systems planned to build its 400-megawatt fusion power plant in Chesterfield County, Virginia, naming the facility the Fall Line Fusion Power Station. It plans to connect the facility to the grid and start delivering electricity in the early 2030s. The company hit several pre-construction milestones last year and has already signed offtake agreements with Google and Eni. 

Some background: Approval to connect to the grid could take four to six years, as there are many questions as to whether fusion will ever be a commercially viable energy resource. 

Fusion energy is the type of power generation that replicates processes that fuel the sun and other stars, when two nuclei combine to create a nucleus. This alternative source of energy does not produce greenhouse gases, produces less radioactivity than nuclear fission, and is estimated to produce 10,000,000 times more energy per unit of fuel than traditional fossil fuels like coal. 

However, technology has yet to be developed to harness this energy at commercial scale. As of last year, the longest a nuclear fusion machine has maintained the necessary reaction to produce power is just over 22 minutes. 

TRUMP SIGNS MEASURE LIFTING MINNESOTA MINING BAN: Trump signed into law a measure that overturns a Biden administration mining ban in northern Minnesota. 

The president yesterday signed a Congressional Review Act resolution that would end 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 was led by Republican Rep. Pete Stauber of Minnesota. 

The Boundary Waters are located within the Superior National Forest, which contains reserves of copper, nickel, and cobalt. Republicans alleged that the Biden administration made procedural missteps in imposing the ban in 2023 and failed to report the restrictions in the Congressional Record.

“Never again will any Democrat President be able to unilaterally ban mining in this strategic area of the Superior National Forest,” Stauber said in a statement. 

Read more about the CRA measure by Maydeen here. 

RUNDOWN 

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