In a bold move highlighting the clash between federal energy priorities and California’s stringent regulations, Houston-based Sable Offshore Corp. is turning to the Trump administration’s National Energy Dominance Council for help in reviving a stalled offshore oil project off the coast of Santa Barbara.
The Santa Ynez Unit, a cluster of offshore fields holding hundreds of millions of barrels of crude, restarted production in May after a decade-long hiatus triggered by a 2015 pipeline spill. However, state opposition has left the onshore pipeline network unpermitted, forcing Sable to consider exporting the oil via tanker ships if approvals don’t come through soon.
Sable CEO Jim Flores has made it clear that resolving this impasse is “absolutely on Trump’s agenda.”
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The company, which acquired the assets from Exxon Mobil last year, has briefed Trump’s council—co-led by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Energy Secretary Chris Wright—on the regulatory hurdles. Flores emphasized that without pipeline access, California risks losing jobs, tax revenue, and local fuel supplies as the crude heads overseas, potentially tightening the market and driving up prices for consumers already burdened by high costs.
This development comes amid growing frustration with California’s energy policies under Governor Gavin Newsom, which critics argue have strangled the state’s oil and gas sector through excessive regulations and ideological pursuits.
Oil production in California has plummeted 35% from 169 million barrels in 2018 to 109 million in 2023, largely due to measures like local bans on new wells and a 3,200-foot setback rule that has halted new permits.
New oil well permits have dropped dramatically from 2,664 in 2019 to just 73 in 2024, turning what was once a robust industry into a shadow of itself.A recent study from the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business reinforces this, attributing California’s sky-high gas prices—averaging $4.67 per gallon as of April 2025, over 55% above the national average—to policy decisions rather than industry profiteering.
Factors include stringent environmental regulations adding up to $1.15 per gallon in compliance costs, the nation’s highest taxes and fees at $1.64 per gallon, declining in-state production (now only 23% of needs), and a hostile business climate that has driven over 360 energy companies out of the state since 2018.
Refinery closures further exemplify the mismanagement. Valero Energy’s planned shutdown of its 145,000-barrel-per-day Benicia refinery in April 2026, along with others like Phillips 66’s Los Angeles-area facility, could erase 17% of California’s refining capacity.
In a rare intervention, state officials are scrambling to find a buyer for the Benicia plant to avert closure, acknowledging the potential for fuel shortages and even higher prices.
Yet, this comes after years of policies that have increased reliance on imports—now 70% of oil needs—from unstable foreign sources, raising national security concerns.
Environmental groups, such as the Center for Biological Diversity, oppose Sable’s pipeline restart, calling the tanker plan an attempt to “evade state oversight.”
But supporters like Porter Collins of Seawolf Capital argue that “the oil is coming out of the ground one way or another,” and pipelines offer the best path for local benefits and aligning with federal goals for lower gas prices.
As California grapples with its energy decline—marked by doubled electricity rates, grid strains from EV mandates, and a shift away from reliable sources like nuclear and natural gas—the Trump team’s involvement could mark a turning point.
Energy expert Ronald Stein warns that Newsom’s policies make California a “national security risk for America” by fostering dependence on foreign energy.
With ongoing discussions between Sable and the National Energy Dominance Council, this project may test whether federal priorities can override state roadblocks to boost domestic production and achieve true energy independence.
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