The Obama administration extended nearly 1,400 deep-water oil and gas drilling leases to compensate for delays caused by last year’s Gulf spill and the subsequent moratorium on some offshore exploration.
The Interior Department’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement is announcing today that it has concluded the process of vetting requests for extra time, after rejecting just 2.3 percent of the applications.
Ultimately, according to the safety bureau, companies asked the government to grant extensions of up to one year for 1,413 offshore leases. Federal regulators approved 1,381 of those requests.
President Barack Obama broadly announced the lease extension plan in May.
The extensions were aimed at compensating offshore energy companies for a five-month moratorium on deep-water drilling and giving them more time to meet new safety and environmental standards imposed on that work. Companies could get up to an extra year added to leases under the program.
The program was open to non-producing leases in at least 500 feet of water that expire before Dec. 13, 2015. The government may have turned down some companies’ requests because the firms were already producing oil and gas at the sites.
Some congressional Republicans, including Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, also had argued for similar extensions for deep- and shallow-water drilling. Shallow-water drilling was not halted after last year’s spill. But oil and gas companies and their allies in Congress complained that those projects were still hurt by a slowdown in government-issued permits as both industry and government adapted to new post-spill safety regulations.
Typically, leases to drill in deep federal waters last about 10 years.
The American Petroleum Institute cheered the administration’s move as offering “much-needed certainty for companies with ongoing operations,” but suggested that expanded offshore drilling opportunities also are necessary.
“Extending these offshore leases is a good decision, supported by the need to increase production in the Gulf of Mexico and produce in other areas,” said Reid Porter, an API spokesman. “Looking ahead, energy security, U.S. job creation and economic growth would all benefit from responsible offshore development in areas not yet opened.”
That’s the only fair thing to do in this case. I don’t know his motivations, but he got this one right – eventually.
This screams total politics! If this Obama had been in better terms in the ratings, would he had done this? Probably not. Because of this action, this Obama has held up thousands of jobs! YES! Thousands of jobs! And now with the release of these leases, jobs will accure in the first two quarters of next year. Smells totally like a plan for a vote…
@eiioi
You don’t know his motivations?
You really can’t be serious. It’s called pandering for votes and cash from big oil.
Too little, too late, the damage is done and his pathetic attempts to “play nice” are long gone.
Whoop-de-doo, he extended offshore leases. How many NEW permits has his administration given out since the Deepwater Horizon explosion?
who cares about their stupid oil..
that little phrase ( on a need to know bases only ) dont work no more …
glad we stopped buying it.. like last year !
love those magnet engines !
Bill in Houston – the answer is “too many.”
So much for putting his royal foot on their throats…guess brain child determined they’re more powerful than he is.
About time he wised up.
Fair is Fair
Conservative posters with the tongue split down the middle trying to love and hate the POTUS in the same sentence – I suppose you must continue practicing Hypocrisy every chance you get.
so bill if they issue new leases will they drill those faster then then the others they have not drilled before? Does Perry sell the majority of existing homes in a tract before building more? Why does Chevron deserve new leaseas when they are 5-10 years behind exploring their existing leases?
Wouldn’t it be easier if Obama just took over all oil companies like Chaves did?
It’s high time we end our dependence for oil from our enemies.
This does not mean there are more permits, it’s just a bone thrown to the voting public. Isn’t that big of Obama?
Wingnut heads are exploding all over the western hemisphere.
HE CREATED THE PROBLEM IN THE FIRST PLACE! HE CREATED THE VERY MORATOREUM THAT HAS MADE EVERYONE PAY MORE! ONE leak and HE shut down ALL the DEEP WATER RIGS and CREATED the HIGH FUEL prices which in turn made ALL of us pay MORE FOR EVERYTHING!
No one questions that one man has the power to grant or deny this?
Not really news- just pandering to the ignorant, EXTENDED leases, no new permits. Smoke and mirrors by the obummer administration.
Obama is throwing his environmental buddies over the rail trying to get re-elected. Guess he is thinking those of us in the oil business won’t remember what he did and that he is really anti-business.
FIRE OBAMA!
US offshore drilling does NOT significantly impact US energy prices according to the Energy Information Agency (non-partisan experts), if you think that drilling is a sound energy strategy you don’t understand that oil is a global commodity influenced by global demand, not our meager supply chain (we have 2% of the worlds oil, but consume 25%). The oil from the Gulf is sold to the highest international bidder and the profits go to multinational companies that don’t pay US taxes.
PS. This week England just finished construction of the largest offshore wind farm in the world that created more jobs and more energy than offshore oil drilling. Offshore wind and clean energy is the way forward, but we are drilling ourselves into economic hell. Why didn’t Germany or Denmark experience a recession? They have renewable energy standards!
Um, Matt… now those wind farm creating jobs are gone. Oops.