A former Department of Energy official who promoted energy exports during President-elect Donald Trump’s first term is recruiting Republicans to work in the agency after Trump’s inauguration.
Joseph Uddo was one of Trump’s first hires at DOE in 2017 after working on his 2016 campaign. He worked on the transition team and later in the Office of International Affairs, where he was tasked with promoting energy exports as part of a group dubbed “Deal Team Six” by then-Energy Secretary Rick Perry.
The Trump transition did not respond to a request for comment. But three people who are familiar with Uddo’s outreach said he was part of a group of people assisting the transition by calling former DOE officials to gauge their interest in taking high- and mid-level positions in the agency. The three people were granted anonymity to speak about personnel matters.
His involvement is notable because Trump has championed liquefied gas exports, pledging to lift a permitting pause on new LNG export facilities implemented by the Biden administration. Uddo had a hand in promoting LNG exports in Trump’s first term and is currently president of AES Corp.’s Vietnamese operations, where he is overseeing development of a natural gas plant, an LNG import facility and renewable projects in that country.
