Push Is On To Declutter Gulf of Idle Iron
Nearly two years ago, the Obama Administration tightened rules for removing “idle iron” – old oil platforms and pipelines – and on plugging unused wells in the Gulf of Mexico. That September 2010 move was part of a federal crackdown on deepwater oil and gas operations following the 2010 BP spill. Since then, heavy-lift companies have continued to rid the Gulf of unused structures and other firms have positioned themselves for that work. Under the 2010 rules, wells that hadn't been used for five years were to be abandoned or “zonally isolated” within three years after Oct. 15, 2010.
Final Details for Upcoming Central GOM O&G Lease Sale
New Orleans -- Today the Obama Administration provided final details for the Central Gulf of Mexico lease sale announced by President Obama in January 2012, as part of his administration’s ongoing focus on expanding safe and responsible production of our domestic energy sources. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Tommy P. Beaudreau today announced the Final Notice of Sale for a June 20, 2012 lease sale that will make available all unleased areas in the Central Gulf of Mexico Planning Area, offshore Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, including 7,276 blocks on about 38.6 million acres. The sale will take place at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.
Feds Unveil Central GOM Oil & Gas Plan
Obama Administration Announces Proposed Central Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Lease Sale; sale Will Make Nearly 38 million Acres Available as Part of the President’s Blueprint for a Secure Energy Future. The Obama administration has announced that the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) will hold the consolidated Central Gulf of Mexico Lease Sale 216/222 in New Orleans on June 20, 2012. The sale will include all available unleased areas in the Central Planning Area offshore Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. President Obama will discuss today’s announcement during remarks in Nevada later today, in which…
DOI Signs Agreement on 1998/1999 Lease
ssistant Secretary of Land and Minerals Management, C. Stephen Allred signed agreements with BP, ConocoPhillips, Marathon Oil Company, Shell, and Walter Oil and Gas Corporation, addressing deepwater Gulf of Mexico offshore oil and gas leases issued in 1998 and 1999. Under the agreements these companies will pay royalties on oil and gas produced under leases issued in 1998-1999. Revenue will be received for products starting from October 1, 2006 onward. Deepwater leases issued during this time included a royalty incentive to encourage companies to explore for oil and gas in areas where the costs to explore and produce were high. The incentive allowed companies to produce a set volume of oil and gas before they would begin paying royalties.
New Generation Drillship Goes to Work
Conoco and R&B Falcon Corp. announced Deepwater Pathfinder - a first-of-its-kind, ultra-deepwater drillship - began a five-year work program in the Gulf of Mexico. The ship, the first new build capable of drilling in 10,000 ft. of water, will fulfill a $400 million drilling program for Conoco. The vessel is expected to drill three or four wells in its first year of operation, with the first exploratory well being drilled at Garden Banks Block 783. Conoco has interests in 295 deepwater leases in the Gulf. The technological highlight of the ship is its dynamic positioning systems, wherein a specialized combination of seabed and satellite systems send signals to onboard computers.
