US President Donald Trump determined on Thursday that petroleum production, refining and related activities are essential to national defence, a move that could open up US funding for fossil fuel projects.
In a presidential memo, Trump also invoked part of the Cold War-era Defence Production Act, allowing him to provide financial incentives for oil-related activities, pipelines and storage of liquid fuels.
Prices for crude oil and diesel have surged since the US and Israel attacked Iran in joint action at the end of February.
Since then, the conflict has limited energy shipments globally, with Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries exacerbating the fuel shortages.