The US Department of the Interior disputed a Wall Street Journal report quoting Sec. David L. Bernhardt as saying development of the next US Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas leasing program has been delayed indefinitely because of a recent court decision in Alaska which blocks Arctic offshore drilling there.
“Given the recent court decision, [DOI] is simply evaluating all of its options to determine the best pathway to accomplish the mission entrusted to it by [President Donald J. Trump],” a DOI spokeswoman told OGJ in an Apr. 26 email.
US District Judge Sharon L. Gleason ruled on Mar. 29 in Anchorage that President Donald J. Trump exceeded his authority when he issued an executive order revoking orders by his predecessor, Barack Obama, toward the end of his second term that withdrew three federal offshore areas from oil and gas leasing consideration (OGJ Online, Apr. 1, 2019).
A review of the court decision’s possible impacts on the proposed 5-year OCS leasing program was not surprising, National Ocean Industries Association Pres. Randall B. Luthi said in response to the report. “While litigation can take unexpected twists and turns, it is important to note that the offshore energy industry is finally starting to recover,” he observed.
“US offshore investments are even outpacing shale, but there is a very real chance that companies will decide to invest billions of dollars into other foreign offshore energy markets free from litigious activism,” Luthi warned.
“We hope that an appeal of this case will move quickly and that we can proceed with the important work of exploring for America’s offshore resources without unnecessary delay,” Erik Milito, Vice President for Industry and Upstream Operations at the American Petroleum Institute, said on Apr. 26.
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