The Trump administration has initiated a dramatic reversal of previous energy policies, announcing plans for 21 oil and gas lease sales in 2025.
This represents a stark departure from the Biden administration’s approach, which conducted no lease sales during its first year in office.
The Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Land Management have already conducted 11 lease sales under the current administration, per reports.
These sales have generated more than $110 million in revenue for American taxpayers, according to agency officials.
Ten additional lease sales are scheduled for the remainder of 2025.
The agencies confirmed these plans to the Daily Caller, highlighting the administration’s commitment to expanding domestic energy production.
The previous administration had implemented comprehensive restrictions on offshore drilling activities.
Biden’s team also approved what was described as a record-low offshore oil and gas leasing schedule during their tenure.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum emphasized the administration’s energy priorities in a statement to the Caller.
“President Donald Trump has revived American energy,” Burgum said.
“While the Biden administration left our energy resources to waste at the cost of taxpayers, Americans can feel relief knowing that they now have an administration laser focused on unleashing our domestic energy sources, lowering costs, and securing a more affordable and reliable energy future.”
The interior secretary pointed to concrete results from the policy changes.
“The number of new oil and gas lease sales simply speak for themselves,” Burgum stated.
The Caller further noted that the Bureau of Land Management has processed 3,608 new oil and gas permits during Trump’s second term thus far.
This compares to 2,528 permits that were issued during the entire Biden administration, according to Department of Interior data.
Current federal drilling permit approvals exceed previous administrations’ numbers by 43 percent when measured at the same point in their respective presidencies.
The Department of Interior provided this comparative analysis to demonstrate the policy shift.
The administration has opened more than 450,000 acres of federal land for potential energy development projects.
Department officials indicate this represents a significant expansion of available drilling opportunities.
The Department of Interior and Bureau of Land Management are positioned to approve more drilling permits than any other fiscal year in the past 15 years.
Agency representatives confirmed this projection based on current application processing rates.
Trump signed an executive order on his first day back in office to “unleash American energy.”
The Caller outlined that the order also declared a national energy emergency, setting the policy framework for expanded drilling operations.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act provided additional legislative direction for energy expansion.
The legislation specifically ordered the Department of Interior to “immediately resume onshore quarterly lease sales in specified states.”
The current administration’s focus on conventional energy resources contrasts sharply with previous policies.
The Biden administration had frozen liquified natural gas exports and blocked the Keystone XL pipeline project on its first day in office.
Biden’s approach emphasized renewable energy development through substantial government financial support.
His administration provided billions in subsidies, loans and grants for wind and solar projects across the country.
