Trump Deploys Five Defense Production Act Memos For American Energy

President Trump signed five presidential determinations under Section 303 of the Defense Production Act on Monday. All five declare critical energy capacities essential to national defense and authorize federal purchases, commitments, and financing to cut through financing shortages, permitting delays, and supply chain choke points. 

Any mention of renewables are noticeably absent, as the administration has been pounding the table on the reliability of coal and natural gas, especially through the recent winter storm…

“Sleep Tight, America. We Got This”: NatGas And Coal Power Plants Prevented Grid Collapse During Historic Winter Blast https://t.co/CvAfdeiwts

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) January 27, 2026

They sit under the national energy emergency we flagged back in January 2025. The moves target fossil fuel production and the infrastructure that actually moves power, while nuclear and geothermal get their own lanes.

Section 303 of the DPA allows the government to act as the financial support for these industries due to the administration’s interpretation that the private sector can’t do it on their own. 

Domestic Petroleum Production, Refining, And Logistics Capacity

This determination covers exploration, production, refining, gathering and transmission pipelines, storage, and marine terminals. DPA authorities now back projects to secure jet fuel, diesel, and gasoline for the military and industrial base, cutting reliance on foreign suppliers that have weaponized energy in the past.

Coal Supply Chains And Baseload Power Generation Capacity

Coal mining, rail and barge transport, terminals, on site stockpiles, and plant life extensions all get the treatment. The memo stresses that baseload coal power remains irreplaceable for defense installations and the exploding electricity demand from AI and manufacturing. Federal support will speed maintenance and logistics that markets alone have left stalled.

Natural Gas Transmission, Processing, Storage, And LNG Capacity

Pipelines, compression, processing plants, underground storage, LNG liquefaction, and export facilities fall under this one. The goal is steady domestic supply plus stronger exports to allies. Long lead times for equipment and construction are the stated problem. 

Development, Manufacturing, And Deployment Of Large Scale Energy And Energy Related Infrastructure

This broader determination is for engineering, site acquisition, permitting, early stage financing, and domestic manufacturing capacity for large energy projects. It removes the capital and regulatory friction that has slowed big builds across the sector, creating a practical foundation for faster scaling wherever the need is greatest.

Grid Infrastructure, Equipment, And Supply Chain Capacity

Transformers, transmission lines, substations, high voltage breakers, power electronics, and the full upstream supply chain are targeted here. Aging equipment, foreign dependence, and slow domestic output threaten reliability. The action backs US manufacturing to harden the grid that must carry power from every source.

Nuclear and Geothermal

As we have tracked since the May 2025 executive orders, the nuclear fuel supply chain is already moving under its own DPA Consortium and related authorities, with the explicit target of quadrupling US nuclear output by 2050. 

Geothermal development was also left out of today’s batch. It too appears to be advancing on its own parallel track through existing federal programs and private sector momentum that do not require another layer of Section 303 intervention right now.

These efforts could benefit from the expanded DPA authorities granted to Energy Secretary Chris Wright on March 13, 2026. In an amendment to the National Defense Resources Preparedness executive order, President Trump delegated additional powers directly to the Energy Department, enabling Wright to invoke Section 303 authorities swiftly to restart critical domestic oil infrastructure and counter supply disruptions caused by the war. That same streamlined authority now positions Wright to accelerate implementation of yesterday’s five determinations.