Cashing In on Gavin Newsom’s Presidential Ambitions – The Biggest Winner from California Energy Policy Moderation

A surprising catalyst adds tailwinds to an already high-upside, insider-backed oil & gas stock.

California once played a central role in U.S. oil production. During the 1980s and 1990s, the state briefly eclipsed one million barrels per day of production and consistently supplied around 12–13% of the nation’s crude output. Today, its share has fallen to roughly 2%.

Aging oil fields, combined with some of the most restrictive regulations in the country, have made production in California uneconomic for many operators. As a result, the state’s refiners now import about two-thirds of their crude, driving up costs and recently forcing two refineries to shut down. These closures will reduce California’s refining capacity by 17%, a loss that is expected to raise gasoline prices and increase price volatility as the system becomes less able to absorb unexpected disruptions.

Few issues are more politically sensitive than gas prices at the pump, and with Governor Newsom widely expected to run for president in 2028, rising pump prices and declining in-state production have suddenly become top of mind concerns. In response, his administration is advancing a significant policy shift aimed at streamlining new well approvals and increasing local output.

This is big news for one of Josh’s favorite stock ideas—a deeply undervalued company that already had significant return potential—positioned to be one of the biggest beneficiaries from California’s policy shift.