Diamondback exec calls out Trump as tariff concerns mount for U.S. shale industry
(Bloomberg) 鈥 A top executive at Diamondback Energy Inc. called on President Donald Trump鈥檚 administration to explain how the global trade war will help shale producers, a rare instance of public pushback from a U.S. oil boss.聽
鈥淭his administration better have a plan @SecretaryWright,鈥 Kaes Van鈥檛 Hof, president of Diamondback, said April 6 in a聽post on X. He added that U.S. shale is 鈥渢he only industry that actually built itself in the U.S., manufactures in the U.S., grew jobs in the U.S. and improved the trade deficit (and by proxy GDP) in the U.S. over the last decade 鈥 smart move.鈥
A spokesperson for the Energy Department didn鈥檛 immediately respond to a request for comment. Van鈥檛 Hof declined to comment beyond the X post.
His comments are among the first public statements from an executive in the shale patch since Trump announced additional tariffs on countries around the world. Industry bosses delivered聽scathing, anonymous, opinions on the administration鈥檚 energy agenda in last month鈥檚 Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas survey.聽
West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. oil benchmark, has fallen more than 15% since Thursday to trade near $60 a barrel. That鈥檚 well below the $65 threshold that many companies need to profitably drill new wells in Texas and surrounding states, according to the Dallas Fed survey.聽
Diamondback, which last week closed on its $4.2 billion acquisition of closely held Double Eagle, is the biggest independent oil producer in the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico. Van鈥檛 Hof will take over as CEO at Diamondback鈥檚 annual meeting this year.