The oil and gas industry has presented a “to-do” list for President-elect Donald Trump, which includes five key objectives: authorizing liquefied natural gas exports, increasing drilling on federal lands, making pipeline permitting easier, repealing strict vehicle emissions and fuel economy standards, and keeping current corporate tax rates in place.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) believes that Trump’s “drill, baby, drill” slogan can be translated into concrete policy through these measures. Trump has indicated that he intends to sign executive orders related to energy when he takes office on January 20, but has not provided further details.
The Trump administration is also setting up a National Energy Council, which will include federal agencies involved in permitting, production, generation, distribution, and regulation of energy. The council will be led by Interior Secretary nominee Doug Burgum and Energy Secretary nominee Chris Wright, both of whom are associated with smaller, independent oil and gas companies that prefer less regulation.
The API has called for Trump to lift the pause on new liquefied natural gas exports, process pending applications for LNG exports, and increase federal leases for offshore and onshore oil and gas development. The group also wants to make pipeline permitting easier and is concerned that the current corporate tax rates in place may be detrimental to the industry.
Experts suggest that the Trump administration’s efforts may be aimed at increasing the U.S. share of the global oil and gas market, which is currently dominated by OPEC and other producers. However, increasing production and supplies ultimately depend on supply and demand fundamentals in the oil market, which are influenced by factors outside of the president’s control.
