Energy Chief Likely to Go to Interior Dept.

President Reagan, moving to install a new second-term team, is expected to nominate Energy Secretary Donald P. Hodel to succeed longtime aide William P. Clark as secretary of the Interior, Administration sources said today.

The sources said a formal announcement of the move, which in time could set the stage for a proposed merger of the two departments, was expected in a few days--possibly within the next 24 hours.

An aide said Hodel made a trip to the White House this morning to meet with Reagan. The nature of their discussion was not known.

The sources indicated that the Hodel announcement could be accompanied by the choice of a replacement at the Energy Department.

Among the candidates for the energy job is White House personnel chief John Herrington, a staunch conservative whose expertise could signal a renewed push by Reagan to eventually abolish the department, the sources said.

Within the White House, Hodel, 49, has been considered a natural replacement for Clark, a fellow Westerner who has served Reagan in various capacities since Reagan was governor of California.

If confirmed by the Senate, which is considered a near certainty, Hodel would inherit a department embroiled in controversy under James G. Watt and brought under control by the more mild-mannered Clark.

Hodel worked at the Interior Department under Watt.

Like Watt, he is viewed as a strong advocate of policies intended to promote oil, gas and coal development on public lands--a stand Reagan has described as a “balance” of conservation needs and resource requirements and which has distressed conservationists.