Oil And Gas Leases News

The Biden administration on Thursday said it would hold an auction of oil and gas leases in the Gulf of Mexico on Nov. 8 following a court order to expand the sale.In a statement, the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management said the sale would offer about 72.7 million acres on the Outer Continental Shelf, including 6 million acres it had withdrawn from the auction in an effort to protect the endangered Rice's whale habitat.Last month, a U.S. appeals court gave the administration until Nov. 8 to hold the sale, which was originally scheduled for Sept. 27.

The U.S. Department of the Interior said Monday that President Biden would take action to designate about 2.8 million acres in the Arctic Ocean nearshore the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A) as indefinitely off-limits for future oil and gas leasing. This action will complete protections for the entire Beaufort Sea Planning Area, building upon President Obama’s 2016 withdrawal under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to protect the Chukchi Sea Planning Area and the majority of the Beaufort Sea…

U.S. President Joe Biden vowed during his 2020 election campaign to end federal oil and gas drilling as a major step in his strategy to fight climate change.The U.S. Senate Democrats' $430 billion spending bill agreed this week could kill that pledge. If it passes, it would effectively guarantee continued drilling rights auctions on federal lands and waters for at least another decade.Still, with Congress set to begin a summer recess by the end of next week, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer faces a tricky road to quick passage for the bill…

The Biden administration will propose a new five-year plan for offshore oil and gas development by June 30, the date when the current plan expires, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said on Thursday.The announcement comes as the administration has faced pressure from Republican lawmakers to expand domestic drilling to address soaring fuel costs. President Joe Biden, however, wants to reform the federal government's oil and gas program to consider its impacts on climate change.Haaland testified before the Senate energy committee to answer questions on the administration's 2023 budget proposal…

The Biden administration on Wednesday said it would scrap three planned sales of offshore oil and gas leases in Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico.In a statement, the Department of Interior said it was not moving forward with an auction for drilling rights in the Cook Inlet off the coast of Alaska "due to lack of industry interest in leasing in the area."It also said two sales in the Gulf of Mexico would be canceled due to "conflicting court rulings."The three sales were the last to be held under a 5-year plan for leasing in federal waters on the outer continental shelf.

A top U.S. official on Thursday challenged nations to join the United States in setting aggressive goals to expand electricity production from offshore wind.Interior Secretary Deb Haaland issued the call during an appearance at the United Nations climate change conference in Glasgow, Scotland.The administration of President Joe Biden has moved swiftly this year to support a nascent offshore wind industry in the United States, a key part of its plan to decarbonize the power sector…

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced Doug Boren has been appointed as the new regional director for the agency’s Pacific Office in Camarillo, Calif. Boren will be responsible for managing the development of energy and mineral resources on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) offshore California, Oregon, Washington and Hawaii.“Doug has many years of service with BOEM, working on aspects of OCS energy and minerals programs at the regional, national and international levels,” said BOEM Director Amanda Lefton.

A federal judge in Louisiana on Tuesday blocked the Biden administration's pause on oil and gas leasing on public lands and waters, dealing a setback to a key White House effort to address climate change.The order granted a preliminary injunction to Louisiana and 12 other states that sued Democratic President Joe Biden and the Interior Department over the freeze on new drilling auctions. Louisiana is a major hub for offshore oil and gas production.Biden paused the government's leasing auctions in January pending a review that is expected to be completed in the coming weeks.

Following Monday's confirmation of the U.S. Representative Deb Haaland as Secretary of the Interior, the U.S. National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA), representing interests of the country's offshore energy industry, said it was ready to work with Haaland and the Biden Administration to "advance America's offshore energy sector."NOIA President Erik Milito said: "NOIA is ready to work with Secretary Haaland and the Biden Administration to advance America’s offshore energy sector.

President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed a new raft of executive actions to combat climate change, including pausing new oil and gas leases on federal land and cutting fossil fuel subsidies, as he pursues green policies he billed as a boon for job creation.The orders map out the direction for the Democratic president's climate change and environmental agenda and reverse the policies of his Republican predecessor, Donald Trump, who sought to maximize U.S. oil, gas, and coal output by removing regulations and easing environmental reviews."In my view…

President Joe Biden was set on Wednesday to sign executive actions to combat climate change, including pausing new oil and gas leases on federal land and cutting fossil fuel subsidies as he pursues green policies in stark contrast to those of his predecessor Donald Trump.The orders map out the direction for the Democratic president's climate change and environmental agenda and mark a reversal from Trump, a Republican businessman-turned-politician who sought to maximize U.S. oil…

California will block the transport of petroleum from new offshore oil rigs through its state, officials told Reuters, a move meant to hobble the Trump administration’s effort to vastly expand drilling in U.S. federal waters. California's threat to deny pipeline permits for transporting oil from new leases off the Pacific Coast is the latest step by states trying to halt the biggest proposed expansion in decades of federal oil and gas leasing. Officials in Florida, North and South Carolina…

“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.

The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) released a Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) for Chukchi Sea Lease Sale 193, moving the DOI a step closer to resolving federal court concerns regarding the 2008 oil and gas leases offshore Alaska. The FSEIS updates the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) estimates of the full range of production levels from offshore oil fields that might be developed in the Chukchi Sea as well as the related potential environmental effects of the lease sale. “Alaska is a critical component of our nation’s energy portfolio, and the Chukchi Sea has substantial oil and gas potential, as well as sensitive marine and coastal resources that Alaska Native communities depend on for subsistence,” said Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell.

As part of President Obama’s all-of-the-above energy strategy to continue to expand safe and responsible domestic energy production, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) today announced that it will hold Gulf of Mexico Eastern Planning Area oil and gas lease sale 225 in New Orleans on March 19, 2014, immediately following the proposed Central Planning Area (CPA) Sale 231. Proposed Sale 225 is the first lease sale proposed for the Eastern Planning Area under the 2012 – 2017 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Natural Gas Leasing Program, and the first sale offering acreage in that area since Sale 224, held in March of 2008. “This proposed sale is another important step to promote responsible domestic energy production through the safe…

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) today issued a Notice to Lessees (NTL) highlighting a recent decision by the Director of the Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) of the Department of the Interior concerning the rules governing the grant or denial of requests for Suspensions of Production. The OHA decision upheld the bureau’s requirement that lessees must demonstrate a commitment to produce in order to be eligible for a suspension. Suspensions can be granted to leaseholders to extend a lease past the primary term for oil and gas leases on the Outer Continental Shelf.

According to a Feb. 14 report from Bloomberg, Royalties paid to the U.S. by oil and gas companies for offshore production are forecast to increase 68 percent under President Barack Obama’s 2012 budget. Receipts will reach $5.97 billion in the year that starts Oct. 1, from $3.56 billion in 2010. Obama also is proposing $25 million in fees from energy companies that hold nonproducing oil and gas leases, part of the administration’s effort to provide taxpayers with higher revenue from minerals development.   (Source: Bloomberg)

The Department of the Interior's Minerals Management Service (MMS) has disbursed $65 million to six coastal states: Alabama, Alaska, California, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. This is the fourteenth installment in a series of annual payments based on 1985 settlement legislation regarding the allocation of royalties, rents and bonuses from certain federal offshore oil and gas leases. The 1978 Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Lands Act Amendments provided for certain coastal states and the federal government to share revenues earned from OCS leases, generally, three to six miles beyond a state's coastal boundary. This area, known as the 8(g) zone, is named after the enabling paragraph of that legislation.

Gov. Kathleen Blanco's threat to block oil and gas leases off the Louisiana coast until the state gets a larger share of the revenue to restore its coast has gotten the attention of Washington, although it's uncertain whether the stand will pay off. According to the Times-Picayune, the Minerals Management Service, which oversees the drilling program, acknowledges that it must seek comments from governors of states in which it plans to bid offshore leasing arrangements. But it's uncertain whether it must honor their objections. The agency would examine any comments from Blanco or other governors but is still likely to proceed with awarding drilling rights off the Louisiana coast. The next round of leases is scheduled for August. A challenge from Blanco could end up in the courts.

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.

A total of $2.9b in high bids were opened recently at a sale of federal offshore oil and gas leases in the central Gulf of Mexico. Officials say it was the second largest such sale for central Gulf tracts. Seventy-three companies are competing for the tracts. In all there were 1,428 bids on 723 tracts. The bids were opened by the US Minerals Management Service, which manages the leases. Many of the tracts receiving bids were in ultra-deep water, or in depths of 800 meters or greater. Development of such leases can take hundreds of millions of dollars in investments and take years to bring into production. Also drawing continued interest were tracts of 200 meters or less on the shallow Gulf shelf.