US President Donald Trump has quietly replaced top federal energy regulator Neil Chatterjee while people were focused on the election result.
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) announced that President Trump has replaced its chairman Neil Chatterjee. According to the regulator, the president's decision may be due to his support for clean energy.
Advocating clean energy
Recently, Chatterjee expressed support for clean energy solutions, including electric vehicles and rooftop solar, while Trump has been backing coal, which has been gradually losing ground to solar and wind energy.
In an interview with CNN Business, Chatterjee said: "I knew when I embarked on this path that there could be blowback. I'm speculating, but if in fact this demotion is the result of blowback, I'm completely at peace with it. I did the right thing. I'm proud of it. I slept great last night."
Chatterjee is a Republican and former energy adviser to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Trump first nominated him to the position in May 2017.
Despite being witness to the economic impact caused by the decline of the coal industry, the Kentucky native is still pushing for renewable energy resources.
Demotion as chairman
Trump has selected James Danly as Chatterjee's replacement as FERC chairman. Danly became a commissioner in March and have expressed opposition to FERC orders that would support clean energy.
Chatterjee, who will remain as a commissioner, said he did not receive any explanation for the demotion and added that he's had "no contact from anyone at the White House." His removal as chairman is considered noteworthy since it makes Chatterjee the highest-ranking political appointee to be removed after Election Day.
He said: "It's remarkable that I was first. I'll be honest, I would bet a lot of money that the President and no one in his inner circle has a clue that this even happened."
He argued that his removal as chairman may be due to opportunism. Chatterjee added: "I think this was done by lower-level staffers in the White House who, in a wild time, saw an opportunity to send a message and took it. And that's totally fine."
Reactions to the FERC change
Analysts agreed that Chatterjee's demotion may be related to his recent support for clean energy.
Height Capital Markets analyst Josh Price said Chatterjee's recent "pro-competition policies may have been viewed by the White House as anti-coal." In early 2018, Chatterjee, along with two other Trump appointees, opposed a proposed bailout of the coal industry.
Meanwhile, the American Council on Renewable Energy released a statement saying they were surprised at the "sudden change in leadership" at FERC. The council has commended the former chairman for his initiatives on carbon pricing and distributed energy but criticized other steps that were "deeply disappointing and destructive" because they undermined renewables.
The FERC is composed of five commissioners and rules state that no more than three of those officials can come from one political party. However, it is currently being led by just three commissioners, two Republicans and one Democrat, as the Senate is yet to confirm two nominees.
Chatterjee's term as commissioner is until the end of June 2021 and he may remain as chairman pending the confirmation by the US Senate on his replacement.
Chatterjee pointed out: "In a divided government, there's not going to be a Green New Deal. There's not going to be a carbon tax. I think FERC will be the game — and I will be a central player in that game."
