# Washington puts Defense Production Act money behind refining: up to $150 million to restart and expand US refineries, recipients not yet named > The US Energy Department said on October 22 it will spend up to $150 million in Defense Production Act Title III funds to raise US refinery output, including restarting a refinery it did not name, and Reuters reports President Trump signed a memo the same day declaring petroleum production, refining and related activities essential to national defense. No recipients, sites or timetable have been published, and the sum is small next to the cost of refinery capacity, so the program's effect depends on who is selected and what conditions come with the money. - Label: Fact - Type: News item - Published: 2026-10-24T06:13:38+09:00 - By: Jun Zhong - Researched and drafted by: Beacon's AI newsroom - Topics: Refining, Regulation, Pipelines - Canonical: https://beacon.winda.ai/news/2026-10-24-dpa-petroleum-determination/ ## Where it stands The Energy Department has announced up to $150 million in Defense Production Act (DPA) Title III funding for refinery production, storage and logistics, and says selections are under way and will be announced "in the near future" [1]. It has not named a recipient, the refinery it intends to restart, eligibility rules or a timetable [1]. Reuters reports that a presidential memo signed on October 22 names no specific projects [2]. ## What happened On October 22 Reuters reported that President Trump issued a memo determining that petroleum production, refining and related activities are essential to national defense, invoking part of the DPA so that the government can offer financial incentives for oil activities, pipelines and liquid fuel storage [2]. The memo says that without federal action the US cannot supply enough of those services in a "timely manner" because of constrained financing, long lead times, permitting and infrastructure bottlenecks and supply chain limits, per Reuters [2]. The same day the Energy Department said it would deploy up to $150 million of DPA Title III money "in partnership with private industry" to raise output of gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other products, which it expects to add "millions of gallons per day" of refining output [1]. The department's release cites Presidential Determination No. 2026-11 as the legal basis and draws on $1 billion appropriated for energy projects deemed critical to national security [1]. The Federal Register shows that determination was signed on April 20, 2026 and published on April 23; it treats domestic petroleum production, refining and logistics capacity as vital to national defense, waives procedural requirements under DPA section 303(a), and permits federal purchases, purchase commitments and financial support [3]. The refinery money follows two other DPA moves in October. Vice President JD Vance said the week before that the administration would use the act to expand capacity at a Texas refinery owned by Delek US Holdings, per Reuters [2]. On October 19 Energy Secretary Chris Wright announced up to $42 million in DPA Title III funding for pre-construction and permitting work on Williams' proposed 125-mile, 650,000 dekatherm a day Constitution gas pipeline from Pennsylvania to New York, citing a separate April determination, No. 2026-12, per Rigzone [4]. New York's governor's office says no application is currently before the state, and the state has sued over its oversight rights [4]. The backdrop is a fleet already running hard: US refineries averaged more than 95 percent of capacity from May through September, the highest for those months since 1998, on capacity about 4 percent smaller than in 2019, the EIA said, per Reuters [5]. Reuters notes crude and diesel prices have risen since the US and Israel attacked Iran in late February and that the November 3 elections loom [2]. **Analysis:** ## What it means The money is small. Up to $150 million spread across refineries buys debottlenecks, tankage and logistics, not new crude units. The program's reach will show in the selection list and in any conditions attached to the awards, not in the headline sum. The restart is the part an integrity manager should watch. Restarting a refinery that has stood idle means reestablishing the condition of equipment that has sat, often partly preserved, for months or years, and rebuilding the inspection and mechanical integrity records that go with it. The release names no plant, so there is no way yet to judge how long it has been down, what was preserved, or who will staff it. When the site is named, the questions are its shutdown date, its preservation program, and whether the restart schedule leaves room for a full pre-startup review rather than one compressed by the political calendar. For a fleet that ran above 95 percent all summer, federal money tied to output adds pressure to keep units running and push turnarounds out. Operators that take DPA funds should expect their reliability record to be read against the award. For pipelines and storage, the memo widens the toolkit, but the Constitution case shows that federal money does not override state water permits. Watch three things: the named recipients and the restart site; whether awards come as grants, loans or purchase commitments; and whether any award carries permitting acceleration. ## Sources 1. [Energy Department to Use Defense Production Act Funding to Restart American Refinery and Expand Refining Capacity, US Department of Energy](https://www.energy.gov/articles/energy-department-use-defense-production-act-funding-restart-american-refinery-and-expand), 2026-10-22 2. [Trump invokes Cold War-era Defense Production Act for oil production, refining, Reuters](https://boereport.com/2026/10/22/trump-invokes-cold-war-era-defense-production-act-for-oil-production-refining/), 2026-10-22 3. [Presidential Determination 2026-11: Presidential Determination Pursuant to Section 303 of the Defense Production Act of 1950, as Amended, on Domestic Petroleum Production, Refining, and Logistics Capacity, Federal Register](https://www.executive-orders.com/documents/2026-08016), 2026-04-23 4. [DOE Advancing Constitution Pipeline to 'Strengthen Security', Rigzone](https://www.rigzone.com/news/doe_advancing_constitution_pipeline_to_strengthen_security-23-oct-2026-184918-article/), 2026-10-23 5. [US refiners have run harder in 2026 as tight diesel supplies boost margins, EIA says, Reuters](https://boereport.com/2026/10/22/us-refiners-have-run-harder-in-2026-as-tight-diesel-supplies-boost-margins-eia-says/), 2026-10-22 Published by Winda Beacon (https://beacon.winda.ai).