Trump met oil executives to discuss agenda as tariffs weigh on prices

President Donald Trump met with more than a dozen oil and gas executives at the White House on Wednesday afternoon, as the industry lobbies the administration to slash regulations.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Energy Secretary Chris Wright also attended the meeting. Burgum leads Trump’s National Energy Dominance Council. Wright serves as vice chair of the interagency body.

Burgum said 15 to 20 executives attended the meeting at the White House. The discussion focused on permitting and regulation, the interior secretary said. Oil prices were not a major topic, he said.

“There was really no discussion on price,” Burgum told reporters after the meeting. “Price is set by supply and demand. There was nothing we could say in that room that could change that one iota, and so it wasn’t really a topic of discussion.”

The executives who attended the meeting are affiliated with industry lobby group the American Petroleum Institute. A spokesperson for API said those attending the meeting are members of the group’s executive committee without disclosing names.

Chevron CEO Mike Wirth, ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance, Marathon Petroleum CEO Maryann Mannen and Phillips 66 CEO Mark Lashier are members of the committee, according to public biographies of the executives. The committee has up to 15 members, according to API tax filings.

Exxon and Chevron, the biggest oil producers in the U.S., declined to comment.

Trump has made energy central to his agenda, with a focus on boosting fossil fuel production, and has ditched the Biden administration’s commitments to fight climate change.

API wants the Trump administration to increase leases for oil and gas drilling on federal lands and waters, make pipeline permitting easier and expedite approvals for new liquified natural gas exports, according to a roadmap released by the lobby group.

Burgum, a former North Dakota governor, made clear to oil and gas executives at an energy conference in Houston last week that the Trump administration intends to make it as easy as possible for the oil and gas industry to drill on federal lands and waters.

U.S. crude oil prices have pulled back about 13% since Trump took office, as his tariffs have raised fears of a recession that could crimp demand. An OPEC+ decision to increase production starting in April has also weighed on prices.