United States President Donald Trump has invoked the Defense Production Act to provide federal funds for a wide range of energy projects, as his administration faces pressure to help curb rising oil and gas costs.
Trump yesterday signed five presidential determinations under the law, according to a White House official on condition of anonymity.
Those measures broadly cover a number of sectors, including coal power, liquefied natural gas, domestic petroleum and power-grid infrastructure.
The move allows the Energy Department to deploy funding that was secured last year in Trump’s flagship tax-and-spending package.
The directives authorise the use of tools including energy purchases and financial support, the official said, in a bid to overcome delays, financing shortfalls, regulatory hold-ups and market barriers.
Projects eligible for awards could include coal-fired power plants, gas-turbine and transformer manufacturing facilities and critical electrical production sites — all of which have had shortages. — Bloomberg News
