At Wednesday's confirmation hearing, two of the people who will oversee U.S. global energy policy, Sen. Marco Rubio and fossil fuel executive Chris Wright, accused President Biden of being overly concerned about climate change. expected to attack.
A spokesman said Wright, who was selected to lead the Energy Department, would say that Biden “views energy as a liability, not a tremendous national asset.” President-elect Trump has pledged to immediately begin rolling back electric vehicle tax credits and rescind a moratorium on new permits for gas export terminals.
But the Biden-Trump split may sound better than it actually is, at least on key policy issues like natural gas exports, battery supply chains and competition with China.
In an interview before his confirmation hearing, Jeffrey Pyatt, Biden's top energy diplomat at the State Department, used similar language to Wright. Pyatt said energy is a “strategic asset for strengthening our allies” and “a national security attribute,” making an explicit reference to fossil fuels. If Mr. Rubio is confirmed as secretary of state, he will choose Mr. Pyatt's successor.
Pyatt said U.S. crude oil production is up 70% from eight years ago, and U.S. exports of liquefied natural gas, which now dominates the global market, will double from almost nothing in 2016. did. Regarding Trump's next term. “The United States is an energy superpower,” he said. “We're securing energy in a way we've never seen before. From an energy perspective, we're not dependent on the Middle East. It's completely different than it was 10 or 20 years ago.”
Under Mr. Biden, the United States now produces more oil than any other country in history. It is also the world's largest gas producer and largest exporter. After Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Mr. Pyatt, a former ambassador to Ukraine and Greece, spearheaded the U.S. effort to phase out Russian fuel in Europe, liquefying U.S. gas and transporting it from the Gulf to the Atlantic. .
Mr. Pyatt also pointed out that the congratulatory cables Mr. Trump received from Europe and Japan when he won reelection rightly reaffirmed the important role of gas in trade and mutual security.
The Biden administration's suspension of approvals for new applications for gas export terminals will almost certainly be rescinded by Trump, but experts say the initial move was a sign of U.S. dominance in global gas markets and Trump's He said it has little bearing on any efforts to expand further. As renewable energy prices continue to fall around the world, exports will face the reality that long-term growth in the market is uncertain.
“Generally speaking, we will see continuity in energy market outcomes despite changes in policy,” said Jason Bordoff, director of the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University.
The main difference, Bordoff said, is that the Biden administration advocates energy policy in terms of emissions reductions and climate change, while the Trump administration focuses on gas prices and national security, even if the latter is the case. He said that he would likely refer to it more publicly and clearly. He also clearly supported Biden's policies.
For example, even if Mr. Trump manages to slow the growth of the domestic electric vehicle market in the United States, he is “similar to the Biden administration's concerns about China's dominance in the battery supply chain at a time when demand for electricity is increasing.” It will still be driven by 'artificial intelligence and data centers,''' Bordoff said.
China now controls most of the global supply chain for clean energy technologies. More than 90 percent of rare earth mineral processing takes place here, and more than three-quarters of all battery cell production takes place here. China also dominates most components of solar and wind power, although U.S. production has recently accelerated due to provisions in Biden's signature climate bill, the Controlled Inflation Act.
Experts say U.S. investments in battery supply chains and mineral mining in Africa and elsewhere are almost certain to be maintained and could even expand. The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, which has led efforts to counter China's dominance in the sector, was created by the first Trump administration.
Trump's new team “needs to figure out what are the areas that have gone so far that we can't possibly catch up,” Pyatt said, questioning whether it would be wise for the rest of the world to politicize electric vehicles. It showed. We have already “thrown money” towards the transition away from fossil fuels.
“The rest of the world is going to continue, and I think our companies that are globally active understand that,” Pyatt said, adding that similar companies are emboldened to follow Trump's lead. He added that he would like people to convey this message. Hey, we shouldn't walk away from this thing, because this is how we're going to make money in the future. ”
