About six months before the first U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran, the Trump administration gutted the Bureau of Energy Resources (ENR), an 80-person team within the State Department tasked with leading international energy diplomacy. The cuts were part of the then Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative to reduce the federal workforce, with the goal of slashing the federal budget.
More than a month into the conflict—with President Donald Trump indicating he will redouble attacks on Iran in the coming weeks—former ENR officials are warning DOGE eliminated key roles that would have helped the administration navigate and mitigate the energy chaos of the conflict and its impact on global oil markets, as well as foresee potential consequences of ongoing actions.
Fortune spoke with two former ENR officials—who wished to remain anonymous out of fear of retribution from the department—who are sounding the alarm on the insights and knowledge the federal government has lost as a result of the cuts, especially during a period of widespread oil and energy disruptions.
“It’s shocking how poorly prepared the administration is,” one former employee told Fortune. “You took away the people with the expertise and contacts who would be insanely useful in this context.”
Created in 2011 by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton under the Obama administration, ENR was intended to navigate the geopolitical complexities of the global energy industry. Made up of diplomats and policy experts, the bureau developed close ties with embassies, foreign energy ministries, and private sector energy companies. Officials compiled relevant information to brief the Secretary of State and other department officials, as well as engaged with stakeholders such as private energy companies.
In July 2025, ENR effectively ceased to exist, with media outlets reporting the remnants of the bureau would be folded into the Bureau of Economic, Energy, and Business Affairs (EEB). About 1,300 personnel were cut from the State Department by summer 2025. The only ENR staff retained were those working on critical minerals and renewable energy.
Former officials were particularly befuddled by the cuts given Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s previous comments about wanting the U.S. to play a significant role in global energy.
“We need to be at the table to have conversations about not just what our role in energy is, but how we help invest or partner with countries that have a supply of energy,” Rubio said in a budget hearing last May.
“Nobody knows why they cut us,” one former ENR employee said. “Especially since a key part of the office’s mission was to monitor and engage with major fossil fuel companies and ministries.”
A State Department spokesperson confirmed to Fortune that ENR’s capabilities have been incorporated into EEB.
“Following this comprehensive reorganization, the Department’s energy policy teams are performing better than ever,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “EEB is coordinating the release of strategic reserves with allies and partners in response to Iran’s attacks, driving increased exploration and production with U.S. companies in key theaters globally, especially in Central Asia, Africa, and the Western Hemisphere including Venezuela, and hosting the Secretary’s historic Critical Minerals Ministerial earlier this year with 55 international delegations in one of the largest ministerials at the State Department.”
Impacts of the war
As a result of the U.S. and Israeli attacks and subsequent Iranian counter attacks, the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial chokepoint through which roughly 20% of the world’s oil flows, has been effectively closed, roiling energy supply chains and driving up the price of crude above $100 per barrel. Gas prices have jumped above $4 per gallon on average, the highest since 2022. The ongoing attacks have sent global markets reeling, stoking concerns of a global oil shock.
The former ENR officials said the existence of the bureau today would not have stopped the war, but could have provided key data to the private sector and Rubio to inform decision-making on energy supply and distribution.
“So many current and former federal government experts assess that this particular administration would likely have ignored guidance that waging this war would be foolish and unlikely to advance U.S. security and economic interests,” another former employee said. “But there is a zero percent chance that Secretary Rubio, particularly in his very empowered dual role, would not have been made aware of these particular eventualities or predictions.”
One former official said one ENR role during the conflict could have been to work with foreign ministries and U.S. embassies to identify vulnerable critical infrastructure in the Gulf region, such as in the South Pars in Iran or the North Field in Qatar, and strategize a path forward if that infrastructure was attacked. Those analyses would have revolved around how attacks would impact oil and gas production, and how supply could be diverted to alternative pipelines to keep energy going out to global markets.
ENR also had contract agreements with specialized private firms that looked at shipping data tracking major oil tankers. Both former employees Fortune spoke with had close connections with oil companies such as Chevron, BP, and ExxonMobil, and in times of conflict, could have used those channels to obtain shipping data and help determine the amount of oil and natural gas already in tankers heading to market. During non-conflict times, ENR was these companies’ first call for non-U.S. investments, one official said.
These communications could have reduced the elements of surprise for U.S. government officials about energy disruptions and vulnerabilities to Iranian attacks, as well as the consequences of attacks on global oil supply.
“If nothing else, our energy sector and foreign private sector companies could have been better informed about what [the U.S. government] is considering,” one official said. “And our government could have had much more information about the concerns of other countries and other companies.”
Long-term ramifications
These deep institutional connections were gutted along with the personnel maintaining the relationships, representing a loss to what one official called the “continuity of experts” the State Department once had access to. The functional bureaus, such as ENR, were made up of subject-matter experts in longer-term government roles who once trained foreign service officers, many of whom are still employed at the agency.
“The DOGE cuts have created structural gaps in the State Department’s knowledge on energy of all forms, and definitely oil and gas,” one former official said.
Top ENR officials had close connections with ministries and private companies who could have picked up the phone and called these stakeholders directly. Many existing energy experts stationed in the Gulf had to evacuate their embassies, and were unlikely to easily and quickly communicate with decision-makers. Many ENR officials were based in Washington, D.C., and if the bureau was still around today, could have filled in some of the gaps in immediate communications.
“We could have easily picked up a chunk of their work while they were in transit back to the U.S. as part of full or partial embassy draw-downs,” an expert said.
The former ENR officials’ concerns go beyond the immediate ramifications of the conflict in Iran.
In addition to having comprehensive market knowledge of energy in the Middle East, Gulf, and North African regions, ENR also worked closely with East Asian counterparts. Without key State Department personnel, the picture on how China is making decisions on energy investments are not as complete or accessible as it once was, one former official said. Reduced coverage could impact the U.S. awareness of Gulf energy flows to China. China imports about 1.3 million barrels per day from Iran, making up about 13% of its total oil imports. With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed, China could be doubling down on coal investments, or reducing energy consumption because of shifts towards renewables.
“There was expertise and institutional capacity that was thrown into the garbage,” a former employee said.
If you’re a current or former federal employee with a tip, or if you’d like to share your experience, please contact Sasha Rogelberg on Signal @sashrogel.13.
