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ARTICLE · 14 SEPTEMBER 2026

Trump Administration Issues Executive Order Regarding Bulk Power System Equipment; DOE Requests Further Information

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President Trump's Executive Order 14421 establishes a comprehensive framework for screening foreign-produced equipment in the U.S. bulk-power system, potentially affecting transformers, inverters, battery storage, and control systems tied to certain foreign entities. The Department of Energy has 120 days to issue implementing regulations and is seeking stakeholder input through a Request for Information to balance grid security concerns with reliability, supply chain constraints, and economic impacts across

GlobalEnergy and Natural Resources
Jason A. Lewis
Jason A. Lewis
Scott H. Segal
Scott H. Segal
Andrew Shaw
Andrew Shaw
Laura Sheldon
Laura Sheldon
Danielle Varnell
Danielle Varnell
Kennedy Williams
Kennedy Williams

On August 26, 2026, President Trump signed Executive Order 144211 (the “EO”), declaring a national emergency under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”) and National Emergencies Act (“NEA”) to address foreign-produced equipment used in the U.S. bulk-power system. Along with an accompanying fact sheet, and following other recent orders regarding cybersecurity and grid security, the EO revives and significantly broadens the architecture of President Trump’s 2020 bulk-power system order, covering transformers and transmission equipment but also inverters, battery energy storage systems (“BESS”), generators, industrial control systems, software, firmware, and remote access capabilities. The DOE’s implementing regulations under the EO, to be issued within 120 days, could have profound consequences for a broad spectrum of participants across the power sector.

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