Oil, gas leaders warn Trump he risks harming the industry

The executives from major oil companies, including ExxonMobil Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell Plc, met with Trump at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday to make the case that the domestic policies he’s pursuing threaten to jeopardize his oft-stated goal of U.S. “energy dominance.”

“This isn’t just about investing in Mexico, it’s about building new markets that can continue to buy U.S. products,” said Dennis Arriola, an executive V.P. of Sempra Energy, which owns natural gas facilities and renewable power assets in Mexico. Arriola isn’t slated to attend the meeting Thursday.

The closed-door meeting comes a week after Trump decided to slap a 25% levy on steel imports, and a 10% tariff on aluminum. Pipeline companies that rely on special grades and types of steel not made in the U.S. plan to ask the Trump administration for an exception.

But targeted relief for pipeline operators wouldn’t be enough to satisfy oil companies that focus on extracting crude, or the companies seeking to liquefy natural gas so it can be shipped on tankers around the world. They argue the tariffs will also increase the cost of wells, increasing the break-even price for extracting oil and gas from dense rock formations nationwide.

Meeting participants reportedly included Jack Gerard, the head of the industry’s top trade group, the American Petroleum Institute, and members of its executive committee, such as Devon Energy Corp. CEO Dave Hager and Shell Oil Co. President Bruce Culpepper.

The oil and gas industry leaders are also argued that the sector would be hurt if Trump abandons Nafta, given the country’s extensive energy trade with Canada and Mexico. Mexico accounts for 60% of total U.S. natural gas exports and is the largest export destination for U.S. petroleum products.

API and other industry groups have been urging the administration to retain binding dispute settlement procedures in any renegotiated Nafta, saying those provisions are essential to encouraging investment in Mexican energy infrastructure that in turn serves to expand the market for U.S. products.

Dispute resolution

At issue are the investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) provisions in Nafta that empower businesses to challenge other countries for discrimination. The provisions face opposition from conservationists, who’ve long said they embolden corporations to attack environmental and public health protections in unaccountable tribunals, with corporate lawyers -- not judges -- hearing the cases.

But a more powerful foe is U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, who’s signaled he doesn’t support continuing to subject the U.S. to the ISDS system as part of Nafta.

Companies would reconsider investments in Mexico if they don’t have the safety net of binding arbitration, said Sempra’s Arriola. Sempra owns natural gas facilities and renewable power assets in Mexico.

“Without that protection, you look at future investments in Mexico very differently and you may decide that because of that added risk you’re not willing to make those investments,” Arriola said in an interview on Wednesday. “As we make additional investments in countries like Mexico and help them build out their energy infrastructure and build their economy, that means they have the ability to buy more U.S. products.”