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U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright unpacks the fast track of gas and mineral projects on ‘The Claman Countdown.’
Energy Secretary Chris Wright toured a Rinnai America Corporation tankless water heater factory in South Georgia on Friday to mark 100 days of the Trump administration and the $24 billion his agency said has saved American consumers from regulatory changes it’s made.
The Energy Department first postponed the rule set into motion under the Biden administration, then Congress passed a bill via the Congressional Review Act (CRA) in April to codify the changes, according to a source familiar with the situation.
The Department of Energy paused the Biden-era standards restricting consumer choice for the newer appliances, which were set to take effect in 2029, back in February.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump signed an executive order repealing water usage restrictions on shower heads in April. The next day, the Senate voted 53-44 to repeal Biden-era energy efficiency regulations on tankless water heaters.
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Energy Secretary Chris Wright, left, and President Donald Trump, right (Getty)
A source familiar with the Energy Department’s work cited how it was only the latest in economically beneficial changes to similar standards governing shower heads, washing machines and more.
Rinnai America Corporation also pressed for the CRA legislation that led to the overturning of the previous regulatory rule, according to a company release from April 10.
“We still have billions of people on Earth that don’t get hot showers. I’ve traveled to 55 countries,” Wright said in his remarks to factory employees. “I was just born lucky. I was born in America in the second half of the 20th century. Crazy lucky life… Not everyone is born lucky, but what you’re doing is allowing so many other people to have that incredible luxury of a hot shower at the beginning of the day, at the end of the date.”
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FOX Business’ Kelly Saberi talks with Secretary of Energy Chris Wright as the administration looks to repeal Biden-era energy rules.
The 2023 rule requires that water heaters use 13% less energy than the least efficient models on the market.
The then-Department of Energy calculated the savings per household to be roughly $112 over the course of the product’s lifetime. In turn, the ruling would have made 40% of all tankless water heaters on the market illegal.
“The last two years have been really stressful for our company,” Frank Windsor, president of Rinnai America Corporation said. “The Department of Energy came out with a water heating ruling that would fundamentally ban the technology that we make in our factory that we built three years ago. That technology is 25% more efficient than a tank water heater and lasts twice as long.”
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Energy Secretary Chris Wright joins ‘America Reports’ to discuss his upcoming Middle East trip, global interest in U.S. energy, and the impact of the Trump administration’s tariffs.
Rinnai makes a non-condensing tankless water heater, making it less efficient than the condensing version – and in turn – less expensive, according to a Department of Energy fact sheet.
The condensing water heater uses the exhaust gases to regenerate heat, and can be up to one-third more efficient than traditional water heaters, according to the departmental analysis.
The Japanese manufacturer said if the rules were not reversed, it would cost $15 million to retrofit the Georgia factory to create a new product in line with modern standards.
