President Donald Trump has invoked the Defense Production Act to speed deployment of what the White House considers some of the most constrained segments of U.S. energy infrastructure, such as grid equipment, pipelines and liquefied natural gas systems, considering them critical to national defense.
Published April 23 in the Federal Register, the determinations authorize the U.S. Dept. of Energy to deploy tools under Section 303 of the statute, first enacted in 1950, to allow the president to change industry-related policies in light of national defense concerns. The latest determinations seek to expand domestic capacity across U.S. energy markets through financial support and other changes.
The determinations follow an executive order signed in January 2025 claiming a “national energy emergency.” In the determination notices, Trump said that “financing risks, regulatory delays and market barriers” limit domestic capabilities for development, manufacturing and deployment of large-scale energy infrastructure projects.
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