As a part of what the Trump administration has coined as its “Energy Dominance” initiatives, the administration has thrown its support behind several infrastructure projects that have long been on the industry’s radar but, for one reason or another, not come to fruition.
The latest to be added is the newly rebranded “America First” refinery that, if built, would be the first American greenfield refinery in 50 years. While the project has been discussed since at least 2024 (it was previously called Element Fuels), Trump’s announcement on Tuesday, March 10 said that the project would be backed by a 20-year offtake agreement with Reliance Industries, the massive Indian oil refiner and owner of the world’s largest refinery in Jamnagar, India. To be built at the southern tip of Texas in Brownsville, the America First refinery is estimated to cost $5 billion and would process 165 Mb/d of domestic light sweet crude.
