Columbia Energy Exchange

Last week, President Trump announced that he was imposing significant new sanctions on Russia. It's an effort to cut off revenue Russia needs for its war in Ukraine. This comes at a time when Russia's oil industry is also under pressure from intensifying Ukrainian attacks on refineries, crude pipelines, and export terminals.  It's also happening as producers have been ramping up output amid signs...

Energy has long been used as a weapon. The United Kingdom blocked oil exports to Germany during World War I. Hitler's fall was due in part to losing access to oilfields in the Caucasus. And the most recent example: the 1973 Arab oil embargo, which shocked the global economy.  During the following fifty years, the energy weapon largely receded from the geopolitical stage, and in many countries ener...

Trade tensions between the US and China have hit a new high mark. Last week, after China announced plans to ratchet up its export controls of some rare-earths and magnets with strategic uses, President Trump threatened to retaliate with 100% tariffs, which would go into effect on November 1 or sooner. But the competition between these two world powers goes far beyond trade disputes and tariffs. It...

Industrial policy, supply chain security, and economic competitiveness are central to how we think about clean energy deployment. As the Trump administration pulls back federal support for the clean energy transition, there are more and more calls for pragmatism and realism.  The shifting conversation around clean energy is visible in other ways, too. During last month's Climate Week in New York,...

Last year, an energy permitting reform bill sponsored by Senators Joe Manchin and John Barrasso passed out of committee but failed to gain full support in the US Senate. Since then, rising energy costs and infrastructure backlogs have only heightened pressure on Congress to take another run at reforming the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). As a result, momentum behind permitting reform is...

Following the rollback of key climate provisions from the Inflation Reduction Act, the debate over America's energy future is increasingly contentious. The passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act has eliminated, or at least cobbled, many of the clean energy incentives that were centerpieces of Biden-era climate policy.  This week, climate policymakers, business leaders, investors, and advocates...

Everyone from energy executives to traders on Wall Street to policymakers across the US depend on accurate, timely information about energy production, consumption, and trends. At the heart of this critical infrastructure sits the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). Daniel Yergin, vice chairman of S&P Global, has called EIA's data the "gold standard." But while the amount and complexity of...

Before it invaded Ukraine, Russia was Europe's single largest supplier of imported natural gas. But now that the European Union is considering an outright ban on all Russian gas by the end of 2027, Russia is pivoting to Asia, courting China as both a crucial new market for its gas and an important geostrategic ally. When Russian President Vladimir Putin traveled to China at the end of August, the...

The rollback of the Inflation Reduction Act through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act has reshaped America's climate and energy landscape by cutting tax incentives for wind and solar power and electric vehicles while maintaining some federal support for sources like nuclear reactors and geothermal plants.  While there is some uncertainty about how those policy changes will play out, there are even br...

Jensen Huang, who founded NVIDIA in the early 1990s and built it into one of the most valuable companies in the world today, has thought a lot about AI's impact on global energy and climate systems.  Jensen has much to say about AI's potential benefits for energy innovation, power demand for AI, and a range of related topics, as David Sandalow — the inaugural fellow here at the Center on Global En...

In July, the Trump administration released what it calls an AI action plan. In it, along with several executive orders, the White House lays out its vision for building and expanding the country's AI infrastructure.  Key tenets of that vision include removing regulatory hurdles and accelerating US dominance in the industry. It also has broad energy and security implications. So how could the admin...

After President Trump and Indian Prime Minister Modi met in the White House back in February, US-India relations appeared to be on solid ground. Back then, Trump was still confident he could broker a quick resolution in Russia's war against Ukraine.  Then, last week, the Trump administration said that if India continues to import Russian oil, the US will double tariffs on Indian goods, starting Au...

President Trump's threat to double tariffs on Indian goods, to 50%, as punishment for the country's continued purchase of Russian oil, puts India in an untenable position. The US is its top export market, but India is deeply reliant on importing energy to support the needs of its 1.4 billion people. As the world's most populous nation and one of its fastest-growing economies, India faces unprecede...

The US Environmental Protection Agency plans to rescind the foundation of its authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act.  Eliminating the so-called "endangerment finding" is a key part of President Trump's efforts to reverse Obama- and Biden-era climate policy. The finding was also targeted in the conservative Project 2025 strategy to reshape the federal government. Bu...

Six months in, President Trump's trade war has entered a new phase. Just this weekend, the European Union agreed to a trade deal that includes a promise to buy $750 billion worth of American energy products over the next three years. And this week, with the August 1 tariff deadline looming, the US and China have restarted negotiations. Trump has been using tools of economic warfare since his first...

Countries around the world, including the US, are rushing to secure critical mineral supply chains. As these essential resources, which are key to building clean energy infrastructure, become a major focus in policy and trade discussions, Latin America sits at the center of the competition. It is home to vast lithium reserves in the Lithium Triangle and it holds nearly 40% of the world's copper de...

Many parts of the US have experienced brutal, deadly heat in recent weeks—and there's plenty of summer left. Intense rainfall, made more likely by warming, dropped more than 15 inches of rain in central Texas, claiming more than 130 lives. In addition to the devastating human toll these weather events take, they expose critical vulnerabilities in our energy infrastructure. Power grids are seeing t...

Artificial intelligence is transforming our world — and the energy sector. Earlier this year, the International Energy Agency (IEA) released a comprehensive report examining both AI's projected energy demands and how it  might reshape energy systems. But while headlines often raise alarms around electricity demand growth, the reality is more nuanced and complex. While data centers currently accoun...

The global energy landscape is shifting right now. Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, debates about peak oil demand, and waning support for climate action in some parts of the world are challenging long-held assumptions about the pace and scale of the energy transition. Confronting these complex challenges requires an understanding of the forces that drive energy markets and prices.  So whe...

Just two days after President Trump deployed America's military to attack Iranian nuclear development sites, a shaky ceasefire between Israel and Iran brokered by President Trump emerged. So far, this deal appears to be holding, but there's no formal ceasefire agreement in place—at least not yet. It is clear that Iran's nuclear infrastructure has suffered significant damage, but it's not clear jus...

California has long led the nation in pioneering clean air regulations, from grappling with smog to setting ambitious zero-emission vehicle mandates. The Golden State's unique authority under the Clean Air Act has allowed it to set emissions standards that exceed federal requirements. Around a dozen other states have followed California's lead. But that leadership now faces an unprecedented challe...

In the growing conflict between Israel and Iran, many questions now loom, including the extent of US involvement, the potential for regime change, and the status of Iran's nuclear program. All this uncertainty and speculation is having some impact on energy markets and potentially much more in the weeks to come.  While there have been some attacks on energy infrastructure, there has not been a sig...

Climate imperatives, national security, and the need for reliable, carbon-free, dispatchable power to meet rising electricity demand are all contributing to a resurgence in nuclear energy. The United States is taking a leading role in this industry's growth. Tech companies are signing major deals for nuclear energy to meet their growing energy needs. And President Trump recently signed four execut...

On June 12th, Israel carried out overnight airstrikes targeting Iranian nuclear facilities, military infrastructure, military leaders, and nuclear scientists. While the full scope and implications of the attack are still emerging, energy markets responded immediately. Oil prices spiked in the aftermath, although they subsequently eased.  What are the regional implications of this conflict? How mig...

Congress is rushing to enact what could be the most significant energy policy reversal in decades. The US Senate has begun work on an enormous budget reconciliation bill that would extend President Trump's tax cuts while all but eliminating clean energy programs to help pay for them. The House version substantially repeals nearly all tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act—affecting everythin...