Evan Halper

Washington, D.C.

Business reporter covering the energy transition

Education: Bates College, B.A. in Rhetoric; Columbia University, M.S. in Journalism

Evan Halper is a business reporter for The Washington Post, covering the energy transition. His work focuses on the tensions between energy demands and decarbonizing the economy. He came to The Post from the Los Angeles Times, where he spent two decades, most recently covering domestic policy and presidential politics from its Washington bureau.
Latest from Evan Halper

Phillips 66 charged in federal indictment after Los Angeles oil pollution

The company is accused of knowingly and negligently violating the Clean Water Act. It will be arraigned in the coming weeks.

November 21, 2024
A Phillips 66 refinery in Carson, California, last month.

AI’s hunger for electric power is threatening U.S. climate goals

The enormous electricity needs of artificial intelligence are driving plans for scores of new fossil fuel plants with decades of expected service life.

November 21, 2024
An AEP natural-gas fueled power plant in Dresden, Ohio.

12 big changes Trump could make to climate and environment policy

Clean energy tax breaks, pollution rules and America’s participation in the Paris climate agreement could all be on the chopping block once Donald Trump returns to office.

November 19, 2024

Trump picks fracking firm CEO Chris Wright to be energy secretary

The executive has taken a defiant approach to fighting climate change by attacking policies that call for shifting away from fossil fuels.

November 16, 2024
Liberty Energy CEO Chris Wright, center, talks with NYSE Group President Thomas Farley on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange when the company became publicly traded in January 2018.

Trump picks Burgum for ‘energy czar’ — and interior secretary

Trump taps North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum as both interior secretary and “energy czar” to oversee efforts to gut climate rules and expand fossil fuel production.

November 15, 2024
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum on June 1, 2023, in Fargo. (Ann Arbor Miller for The Washington Post)

Trump taps North Dakota Gov. Burgum to lead Interior Department

Burgum is an aggressive champion of the oil industry, but his views on climate policy may diverge from those of Trump.

November 14, 2024
Donald Trump speaks with, from left, Vivek Ramaswamy, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and Sen. Tim Scott (R-South Carolina) at a campaign rally in Laconia, New Hampshire, on Jan. 22.

What Trump’s victory could mean for oil companies and climate change policy

Trump’s plans have the potential to send fossil fuel companies’ profits soaring while threatening the world’s climate goals.

November 6, 2024
President-elect Donald Trump points to supporters as he leaves the stage after an election night party at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, early Wednesday morning.

As data centers for AI strain the power grid, bills rise for everyday customers

Heavy demand for electricity by data centers is pushing up costs for everyone in some regions, according to utility planning documents and energy industry analysts.

November 1, 2024
An Amazon Web Services data center in Ashburn, Virginia, on July 28.

Trump has vowed to gut climate rules. Oil lobbyists have a plan ready.

As companies fall short on methane emission reductions, a top trade group has crafted a road map for dismantling key rules.

October 18, 2024
Excess natural gas, which contains methane, is burned in a process called flaring at a well pad near Watford City, N.D., on Aug. 26, 2021.

Amazon doubles down on nuclear energy with deal for small reactors

The cloud computing and retail giant signed a deal to buy electricity generated by small modular reactors.

October 16, 2024
An Amazon data center in Aldie, Va.