Red Washington, greener states
Market forces will keep hurting coal, strengthening gas and supporting renewables—whatever Trump thinks about climate science
Four months after Donald Trump's inauguration his federal government has already started rolling back years of federal climate policies. It's not yet clear, though, what the union's states will do. So far, President Trump has announced Executive Orders that cut the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) budget by a third, overturn regulations governing toxic coal-mine waste, suspend work on the Clean Power Plan (CPP) and loosen restrictions on emissions of methane from oil and gas production. That fulfils some of the campaign promises, although the market and its cheap gas, wind and solar—not DC—will decide whether Trump's measures bring back the coal jobs he pledged. For now, Trump is slas
Also in this section
2 April 2026
Alongside a rapid continued build-out of renewables, China’s latest five-year plan stresses the value of domestic hydrocarbon production for energy security and calls for increased Russian gas imports
2 April 2026
The government is taking important steps to revive domestic production, lift investment and benefit from the geopolitical crisis even if more needs to be done in the longer term
1 April 2026
Golden Pass’s startup offers QatarEnergy a timely boost but may also force a difficult choice between honouring disrupted contracts and capitalising on soaring spot LNG prices
1 April 2026
It is not a case of if or when, but the length and magnitude of economic damage from elevated oil prices
