Peter Lake, a central figure in the Trump administration’s push to expand electricity production for artificial intelligence, is stepping down from the White House’s National Energy Dominance Council at the end of this month.
Lake served as senior director of power for the NEDC, bringing to the role his experience as a former chair of the Public Utility Commission of Texas.
In that capacity, he helped develop White House proposals aimed at accelerating data center connections to the power grid while building in protections for ratepayers against rising costs.
Following his departure, Lake will return to Cardinal Rose LLC, his project development and advisory business, according to a White House official speaking on the condition of anonymity.
NEDC Executive Director Jarrod Agen paid tribute to Lake’s contributions in a formal statement, saying: “His work on all things related to power generation from stabilizing and strengthening our grid to helping with the president’s landmark nuclear EOs to driving towards AI solutions with the Ratepayer Protection Pledge has all helped make America energy dominant again.”
Agen added: “He will be greatly missed as a founding member of the NEDC.”
Lake’s exit after nearly a year and a half comes four months ahead of the midterm elections, making it the latest in a series of departures from the Trump administration.
The administration has made accelerating data center construction and securing new power generation capacity a cornerstone of its energy and technology policy agenda.
Just before his departure was announced, Lake appeared at a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission conference focused on PJM Interconnection, where he stated: “This White House very much wants PJM to succeed, but will not tolerate continued failure.”
Lake’s exit follows the reported departure of Energy Department chief of staff Carl Coe, who is also leaving his agency in the coming days.
A White House official confirmed that no replacement decisions had been made, but noted that “NEDC is evaluating several interested candidates” from within the administration.
The search for a successor underscores the significance of the role at a time when AI-driven electricity demand is placing mounting pressure on America’s power infrastructure.
