Randall Luthi News

NOIA President Randall Luthi issued the following statement after Dominion Energy and its partner Ørsted began construction of the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) Project:“NOIA congratulates Dominion Energy for starting construction on the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Project (CVOW) — the first federal and second overall U.S. offshore wind project. This demonstration project is an important stepping-stone towards commercial-scale offshore wind development in the U.S. Dominion’s partnership with leading offshore wind developer…

The National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) announced the support for the Offshore Wind Jobs and Opportunities Act.NOIA President Randall Luthi submitted a letter in support Offshore Wind Jobs and Opportunities Act, ahead of House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources hearing,  Building a 21st Century American Offshore Wind Workforce.“I want to share the National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) support for the Offshore Wind Jobs and Opportunities Act. We agree with the sponsors of this legislation that the coming offshore wind energy boom in the U.S. will need a skilled workforce trained and capable of operating in the unique offshore environment…

America's burgeoning offshore wind industry, which is projected to generate nearly 20 gigawatts (GW) of clean, cost-competitive power in seven East Coast states by 2030, presents a nearly $70 billion CAPEX revenue opportunity to businesses in the U.S. offshore wind supply chain.The Special Initiative on Offshore Wind (SIOW), in conjunction with the Renewables Consulting Group (RCG) has announced the publication of a new report detailing the opportunities businesses in the U.S. offshore wind supply chain, which projected the United States’ offshore wind is projected to generate nearly 20 GW of clean, cost-competitive power in seven East Coast states by 2030.Among key industry components required for such a utility-scale build-out of U.S.

National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) said that U.S. territories need the Offshore Wind for Territories Act.The U.S. has five permanently inhabited 'Territories' in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean: American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands which are directly overseen by the United States Federal Government.NOIA President Randall Luthi issued this statement: “The House passage of H.R. 6665 is welcome news for many Americans this holiday season. Too often, Americans in the U.S. territories are our forgotten citizens."The Offshore Wind for Territories Act empowers U.S. territories such as Guam and Puerto Rico to tap their offshore resources and strengthen their energy security…

For the past few years, depressed commodity prices, stricter regulatory requirements and competition from onshore development at home and from other countries offering attractive offshore lease and royalty terms have had severe impacts on new exploration in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Thankfully, the tide appears to finally be turning.In August, Gulf of Mexico Lease Sale 251 drew increased competition for offerings and $178 million in high bids, $53 million more than previous sale held in March.

Today's U.S. auction of Gulf of Mexico exploration leases drew tepid response from oil companies, but marked notable progress for an industry still in a state of recovery.“While not a barn burner, Lease Sale 251 tops the previous Gulf sale in terms of increased participation, increased competition for offerings, and bid amounts,” said Randall Luthi, president of the National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA). “In addition, bidding activity demonstrates both continued interest in deepwater tracts and renewed interest in shallow water tracts.”Luthi continued…

A U.S. House committee will kick off debate next week on three new bills aimed at boosting offshore wind energy leases in federal waters.The House Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources will hold a hearing on Tuesday on three bipartisan offshore wind proposals.One proposal would require the Interior Department to develop a leasing plan or schedule for federal offshore leases, a second would create a federal grant for educational or career programs for the offshore industry…

An expansion of oil drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico would interfere with U.S. military testing unless the Pentagon and another agency develop rules to govern the work, the U.S. Department of Defense said in a report this week.The Defense Department concluded in a report it sent on Wednesday to U.S. lawmakers that drilling east of the Military Mission Line in the Gulf of Mexico, a demarcation more than 200 miles (320 km) west of Florida, would harm military testing operations…

“The historic size of tomorrow’s Region-wide Gulf of Mexico lease sale, combined with improving market conditions and a shallow water incentive, may draw more interest from industry than we have seen in recent years. “Operators are global in nature and will bid where they believe they will get the most ‘bang for their buck’. The results of recent sales in the Mexican side of the Gulf of Mexico demonstrate that the United States cannot tread water by offering the same acreage time and time again without additional incentives. The good news is that as commodity prices and market conditions have slowly improved, the Trump administration has worked to safely reduce regulatory burden and also incentivize industry investment by offering a 12.5% royalty rate for shallow water leases.

Twenty-two Democratic U.S. senators from 12 states on Thursday joined the chorus of local representatives seeking exemptions from Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's newly proposed offshore drilling plan, after his surprise move on Tuesday to shield Florida. Zinke surprised lawmakers, governors, and industry groups on Tuesday night by announcing that Florida would be removed from the Interior Department's proposal to open up over 90 percent of federal waters to oil and gas leasing.

National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) president Randall Luthi comments on the U.S. Department of the Interior’s (DOI) 2019-2024 National Offshore Oil and Gas Leasing Draft Proposed Program, which seeks to open nearly all U.S. offshore waters to oil and gas drilling. With 94 percent of our nation’s outer continental shelf (OCS) currently and unnecessarily off limits to oil and gas leasing and exploration, NOIA welcomes the bold and broad offshore leasing proposal released January 4 by the Department of the Interior.

After a few years of relative calm, the 2017 hurricane season wreaked havoc in the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico, causing widespread damage and human suffering, and exposing the vulnerabilities and strengths of American energy security. As the flood waters from Hurricane Harvey receded and Gulf coast residents embarked on the arduous road to recovery, the offshore energy industry took stock and counted its losses and blessings. Offshore energy facilities faired remarkably well compared to onshore energy facilities, many of which suffered catastrophic damage from flood waters.

National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) president Randall Luthi weighs in after the House Natural Resources Committee held a hearing on offshore development and introduced the Accessing Strategy Resources Offshore (ASTRO) Act. Today’s hearing was a slam dunk by the House Natural Resources Committee. Not only did the Committee bring in experts and stakeholders with their own unique offshore perspectives to the hearing, the Committee took a bold step in introducing the forward thinking ASTRO Act.

National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) Chairman David Welch has appointed four new members to the association’s Board of Directors. The appointments were announced today during NOIA’s fall meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where the association is commemorating 45 years of commitment to America’s offshore energy industry. Today, the oil and gas industry, long centered in the Gulf of Mexico, produces 17% of America’s domestic oil and 5% of our domestic natural gas, while off the coast of Rhode Island, America’s first offshore wind farm is providing energy to residents and businesses on Block Island. “The offshore energy industry has come a long way in the last 45 years.

Former Louisiana state official Scott A. Angelle will head-up the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE). Angelle, who most recently served as Vice Chairman of the Louisiana Public Service Commission, will assume his new position May 23. “Scott Angelle brings a wealth of experience to BSEE, having spent many years working for the safe and efficient energy production of both Louisiana’s and our country’s offshore resources,” Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke said.

National Ocean Industries Association president Randall Luthi weighs in on President Trump’s Executive Order on offshore energy. It’s a new day and a new attitude for American energy. The National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) applauds President Donald Trump’s Executive Order recognizing the vital role of offshore energy in an overall national energy policy. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) predicts that in the year 2040, traditional forms of energy, particularly fossil fuels, will provide almost 80 percent of our energy needs.

“NOIA supports repeal of Interior’s 2017 Royalty Valuation Rule, which would have created a cloud of regulatory uncertainty, put at risk billions of dollars of federal oil and gas leases and left much needed jobs and revenue for America on the able. The offshore industry, which accounts for nearly a quarter of our nation’s domestically produced oil and natural gas, needs a clear, consistent and fair regulatory environment to thrive. “NOIA applauds Secretary Zinke for taking steps to repeal the rule and reevaluate changes to long-established royalty valuation regulations. The actions proposed by Interior today will enhance a climate of regulatory certainty and clarity, helping ensure that the U.S. remains the global energy leader.

On December 20, 2016, in an 11th hour unilateral action designed to cement his environmental legacy, President Obama withdrew 3.8 million acres in the north and mid-Atlantic Ocean and 115 million acres in the U.S. Arctic Ocean (including the entire Chukchi Sea and a significant portion of the Beaufort Sea) from future oil and gas leasing. Unlike the five year moratoria announced by Canada, President Obama touted these closures as “permanent.” Not only does this short-sighted decision threaten the economic lifeline of Alaska, U.S. energy leadership and U.S.

National Ocean Industries Association President Randall Luthi today issued the following statement on the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s denial of seismic survey permits for the Atlantic OCS. “In yet another ‘black Friday’ announcement targeting the offshore oil and natural gas industry, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) blanket denial of seismic survey permits is an unsurprising attempt to put another nail in the coffin of sensible energy exploration in the Atlantic. Not only does this decision conflict with BOEM’s own scientific conclusion that seismic surveys are environmentally safe, it is self-fulfilling rhetoric, basing its reasoning on President Obama’s recent withdrawal of 3.8 million acres in the north and mid-Atlantic Ocean.

“President Obama’s short sighted, unilateral withdrawal of Atlantic and Arctic Ocean areas from future oil and gas leasing not only risks the long-term energy security and energy leadership position of the United States, it violates the letter and spirit of the law. Such an expansive withdrawal, particularly when argued as being ’permanent’, is clearly inconsistent with the Outer Continental Shelf Land Act’s steadfast declaration that ‘... “Furthermore, today’s decision puts the…

Following President Trump’s address to the joint session of Congress, National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) president Randall Luthi weighs in on  shifting U.S. policy and its effects on offshore energy and the American economy. As President Trump begins work on his ambitious agenda, it appears that efficiency and cost cutting are major themes throughout much of the federal government. Those of us in the energy producing industries say welcome to our world. While low commodity prices and overly burdensome regulations devastated job growth in the energy sector during the last two years…

NOIA President Randall Luthi today released the following statement on the election of Donald Trump as the next U.S. “On behalf of the National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA), I congratulate President-elect Trump on his victory at the polls. The American people have spoken, and this long and contentious election is finally over. Even though it appears the political divide in our Nation has widened, now is the time to work together to promote wise energy policies that will enhance our ability to create jobs and promote energy security. “President-elect Trump should unequivocally reestablish the U.S. commitment to ‘all-of-the-above’ energy policies.

Randall Luthi, President of the National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA), does not pull any punches as he weighs in on the Obama administration’s release of the Final 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Program. The good news is we now have an offshore leasing plan for the next five years that includes a schedule for regular oil and gas sales in the Gulf of Mexico. The bad news is it is only half a plan. Offshore energy development is a vital part of the U.S. economy, providing jobs, energy security and much needed government revenue.