Wartsila CEO says US energy transition will continue despite Trump

The transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy will continue in the U.S. despite President Donald Trump's tariffs due to renewable energy's cheaper pricing, the CEO of power plant maker Wartsila said on Wednesday.

President Trump has laid out a sweeping plan to maximize oil and gas production, including by declaring a national energy emergency to speed permitting, and withdrawing the U.S. from an international pact to fight climate change.

But Wartsila CEO Hakan Agnevall said the changes proposed by the Trump administration would not stop the energy transition from happening in the U.S.

Renewables are growing "quicker than ever in the U.S.", Agnevall told Reuters. "We foresee that this trend will still continue, because it's the cheapest source of energy," he said, referring to wind and solar power.

He said while offshore wind projects may face restrictions, onshore wind and solar will go ahead.

Around 40% of the installed power generation base in Texas, known as the oil and gas state, is renewable, he said, adding it remained one of Wartsila's hottest markets for new power plants that use both renewable and conventional power sources to maintain steady supply.

Finland-based Wartsila, which makes ship engines in addition to power plants, saw its fourth-quarter orders beat analysts' expectations earlier on Wednesday and said it expects demand to grow for both its marine and energy businesses this year.

The company books a little less than 30% of its sales from the Americas. Agnevall admitted the energy business could be hit by possible U.S. tariffs against the EU but added the impact was hard to predict.

With demand growing for data centres in the U.S. driven by the increased use of artificial intelligence, Agnevall said power grid capacity had reached its limits and that data centre developers were looking into building their own power plants.  

"This could evolve into interesting business for us," he said.