WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY: Good afternoon and happy Wednesday, Daily on Energy readers! We are kicking off the newsletter with Energy Secretary Chris Wright praising the Trump administration’s success in temporarily delaying a vote on a global shipping carbon tax, calling it a win against “climate nonsense.”
Meanwhile, U.S. shipbuilders, trade groups, and port operators are now pushing back against the Trump administration’s efforts to hinder offshore wind development. Keep reading to find out how the renewable energy source has actually boosted the maritime industries.
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.
DOE WRIGHT PRAISES THE ADMINISTRATION’S EFFORTS TO DELAY GLOBAL SHIPPING CARBON TAX: Early this morning, Energy Secretary Chris Wright applauded the Trump administration’s move to delay a global carbon tax on the shipping industry.
Wright spoke at the America First Policy Institute’s 2025 Global Energy Summit today where he praised the administration for successfully delaying a vote on the adoption of the International Maritime Organization’s net-zero framework, which would impose a carbon tax on shipping.
The secretary called it a “massive victory” for the United States, adding that he called nearly 20 countries to discuss the measure.
“We have the world’s most influential megaphone by far,” he said. “I will tell you that the ‘it’s going to happen crowd’ was very disappointed last week when the global carbon tax and net zero shipping fuels went down in flames.”
Last week, the Trump administration was able to delay the vote on the carbon shipping tax with 57 countries voting in favor of a delay, 49 voted against, and 21 abstentions. The delay was a surprise to member countries who were confident the measure would pass. Members of the IMO, a London-based agency within the United Nations, initially voted in April to approve the framework.
DOE effort to influence global climate policy: Meanwhile, the Energy Department escalated its pressure on global climate policy. The department, along with Qatar, sent a letter to the European Union regarding its corporate sustainability rules.
Specifically, the letter urges the EU to roll back its Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive. The rule requires firms that operate in the EU to address human rights and environmental issues. Those who do not comply will be hit with a fine of up to 5% of the company’s net worldwide turnover.
Read more by Maydeen here.
US SHIPBUILDERS, PORTS CAUGHT IN BLOWBACK OF TRUMP WIND CRACKDOWN: Several shipbuilders, trade groups, and port operators are now speaking out against President Donald Trump’s efforts to stymie offshore wind development, warning that the administration is unintentionally cutting millions of dollars in government support, investments, and even expected projects for the maritime industry.
The details: For many in the U.S. shipbuilding and port industry, offshore wind projects have been a key driver of growth and investments in recent years. Stifling those projects will trigger a destructive domino effect, according to a new Reuters report.
The Trump administration has moved to block offshore wind development, with Trump leveraging the authority of multiple agencies. This includes yanking federal permits previously granted by the Interior Department to projects set to be constructed and cancellation of more than $679 million worth of funding for port projects.
The actions have had a downstream impact on the shipbuilding and port industry, as some companies have moved to cut contracts for vessels that would have supported offshore wind farms.
One contract, worth around $475 million, was canceled by Danish shipping company Maersk earlier this month. The company had commissioned Singapore-based manufacturer Seatrium to build a new ship to install turbines at the Empire Wind farm off the coast of New York.
Another maritime firm affected by the Trump administration’s crackdown is Rhode Island-based Blount Boats, which has been building vessels to transfer building crews to offshore wind farms since 2016. The company is no longer working on that project.
Read more from Callie here.
VENTURE GLOBAL RECEIVES FINAL EXPORT APPROVAL: The Trump administration has issued its final approval for Venture Global’s liquefied natural gas export project in Louisiana, the same project that was stalled by former President Joe Biden’s controversial pause on export approvals.
The details: The Department of Energy and Venture Global confirmed today that the firm received the final export authorization from the agency, allowing it to export up to 3.96 billion cubic feet per day of LNG to non-free trade agreement countries from its CP2 LNG Project in Cameron Parish, Louisiana. Once built, the facility is expected to export upward of 20 million tons of LNG each year.
The decision comes months after DOE first issued conditional authorization for the facility in March and supports the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s ruling in favor of siting, constructing and operating the project.
“In less than ten months, President Trump’s administration is redefining what it means to unleash American energy by approving record new LNG exports,” Kyle Haustveit, Assistant Secretary of the Office of Fossil Energy said in a statement. “Finalizing the non-FTA authorization for CP2 LNG will enable secure and reliable American energy access for our allies and trading partners, while also providing well-paid jobs and economic opportunities at home.”
Some background: The CP2 LNG Project was at the center of discussions regarding the Biden administration’s pause on LNG export approvals that was put in place in January 2024. At the time, Biden ordered export approvals to countries without free trade agreements to be temporarily halted in order to conduct a study on LNG exports’ environmental and economic impacts.
At the time, Venture Global had been seeking approval to build the Louisiana facility. Fossil fuel proponents accused the administration of imposing the pause to block the project, given the amount of downstream methane emissions associated with increased exports.
WHERE THE PERMITTING DEBATE STANDS: Senate Democrats are pushing back against Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s comments from earlier this week, when he rejected a compromise on wind energy in exchange for bipartisan permitting reform.
Burgum, speaking at an event on Monday, dismissed the idea of a deal on offshore wind to secure bipartisan support for permitting reform, arguing that wind power is wrong for the country.
“I haven’t thought about the idea of trading something that makes sense for everybody in America for something that makes no sense, and that’s how I sort of view offshore wind,” Burgum said.
Democrats warn there needs to be a commitment from the Trump administration that, if permitting reform is passed, renewable energy sources like wind won’t be sidelined. The Democrats’ concerns come as the administration has stymied wind projects, some of which are fully permitted and under construction, from moving forward.
In a Senate hearing this morning, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island responded to Burgum’s remarks, stating, “Well, guess what? Unless the illegal act stops, and unless offshore wind is included, good luck with the trust required for a permitting deal.”
Whitehouse added that trust is needed from the Trump administration in order to reach a deal on permitting reform.
“Trust matters, and the Trump administration is busily destroying any hope of that trust with unrelenting and often illegal assaults on clean energy,” he said.
TVA NOMINEES WON’T BACK PRIVATING PUBLIC POWER PROVIDER: Four nominees to the Tennessee Valley Authority have vowed to keep the largest public power provider in the nation a federally owned entity, assuaging concerns that the Trump administration may move to privatize the TVA.
The details: During a Senate hearing this morning focused on considering four nominations to the TVA’s board of directors, each nominee was pressed on whether they would support promoting the federal utility. All nominees, which included Mitch Graves, Jeff Hagood, Randall Jones, and Arthur Graham, responded with a “no.”
“I’ve experienced both public utility and investor-owned utility, and I think there’s absolutely no reason to do anything different here,” Graham explained further.
Some background: Earlier this summer, industry groups including the International Brotherhood of Electric Workers sounded the alarm that the Trump administration may look to privatize the public power provider. Many of the concerns stemmed from Trump’s decision to fire three sitting board members that were nominated under the Biden administration.
“The TVA is the primary reason the Deep South became the economic force it is today, and IBEW members have been there every step of the way,” IBEW President Kenneth Cooper said at the time. “It’s an American success story that required skilled, union labor. We will fight tooth and nail attempts to turn it into a for-profit corporation whose only concern is ultra-rich shareholders.”
CALIFORNIA TO SET NEW VEHICLE EMISSION RULES: California plans to set new vehicle emission standards by summer 2027 amid the Trump administration aggressive rollback of regulations and policies that support the transition to electric vehicles.
E&E News reported that the California Air Resources Board has initiated its rulemaking process for new emission standards for light-duty vehicles. During a recent workshop, the agency informed participants that it plans to release its staff report in the fall or winter of 2026, before presenting a proposal to the board.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom this summer directed CARB to develop new vehicle emission standards after Trump signed three resolutions into law that rolled back vehicle emission rules to reduce auto pollution and push the transition toward electric vehicles.
The three measures were passed through the Congressional Review Act, a legislative tool for repealing federal regulations by avoiding a filibuster and voting by a simple majority. A regulation cannot be reproposed after being repealed by the CRA.
California has also sued the Trump administration for revoking the standards, calling it an “unprecedented and unlawful use of the Congressional Review Act.”
ICYMI – ENERGY DEPARTMENT AIMS TO PAUSE LEGAL DRAMA OVER CLIMATE REPORT: The Department of Energy is hoping to use the government shutdown to its advantage in the legal fight over its controversial report on climate change, asking a federal judge to temporarily halt a lawsuit filed against the agency.
The details: Court documents filed Monday and obtained by E&E News, reveal that the Department of Justice’s lawyers have been unable to work throughout the government shutdown, even on a voluntary basis, with the exception of some “very limited circumstances including emergencies involving the safety of human life or the protection of property.”
The government is asking Senior Judge William Young, with the U.S District Court for the District of Massachusetts, to temporarily pause legal proceedings in the case as it does not fall within the parameters of emergency exceptions. If the request for a stay is denied, the government has said it will comply with the judge’s order.
Some background: The request came just hours after the Environmental Defense Fund reportedly asked Young to set a schedule for the case, which involves the Energy Department’s now dismantled climate working group and the report on climate change they released over the summer.
EDF and the Union of Concerned Scientists sued DOE in August, claiming the agency violated the Federal Advisory Committee Act when forming the working group of scientists in a number of ways, including through failing to issue a public notice for the working group’s meeting. The agency attempted to dismiss those claims last month by disbanding the group.
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