A Senate committee approved the nomination of Audrey Robertson, an oil industry entrepreneur, on July 30 as assistant secretary of energy for energy efficiency and renewable energy.
The nomination will be sent to the full Republican-controlled Senate where she is almost certain to be confirmed.
Robertson co-founded Franklin Mountain Energy, a Permian Basin-focused E&P, in 2018 and served as its CFO. Coterra Energy acquired the Permian assets of Franklin and Avant Natural Resources in November 2024 in separate transactions that totaled $3.95 billion.
Robertson was nominated for the Department of Energy position by President Donald Trump in February. While well-known as a champion of fossil fuels, she stressed her qualifications in alternative energies to the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources during her confirmation hearing on July 9.
“As an investor and board member, I have dedicated time and resources to numerous next-generation energy technologies, including small-modular nuclear, next-generation geothermal and advanced sodium-ion batteries,” Robertson said. “Advancing technologies like these will be critical to meet our nation’s growing power demands.”
The panel’s vote was acknowledged by Washington insiders as another boost to achieving Trump’s energy policy goals.
“The advancement of Audrey Robertson is an important development in getting President Trump’s energy team in place,” Jack Belcher, principal at Cornerstone Government Affairs, told Hart Energy. “Her management experience and working relationship with Secretary [Chris] Wright should help her deliver the administration’s agenda.”
Robertson’s nomination has been under fire by environmental organizations who remain skeptical that an oil and gas executive can administer energy efficiency and renewable energy policy in a way that does not favor fossil fuels. She fended off those concerns during her hearing.
“Energy is a complex subject, and I believe simplistic and disingenuous to apply labels like ‘clean energy’ and ‘dirty energy,’” she said. “There is only energy, and every source and form of energy has trade-offs. I support all forms of reliable, affordable and secure energy.”
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