The Biden administration is preparing to reverse another Trump initiative, the development policy for the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A), which itself had been a revision of an Obama administration policy.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) informed a federal court Jan. 10 that it has decided to revert to the Obama administration’s 2013 “integrated activity plan” for the NPR-A. It would mean a more restrictive leasing policy for oil and gas activity than what had been contemplated—although never carried out—by the Trump administration’s 2020 plan.
BLM said its preferred option for the activity plan would retain only a few things from the 2020 plan—some “more protective lease stipulations and operating procedures for threatened and endangered species.”
BLM publicly announced its decision on the same day that it reported the decision to the US District Court for the District of Alaska. The Alaska delegation to Congress reacted with anger and joint press statements.
“With zero analysis or consultation with Alaskans, the Biden administration has decided to upend the NPR-A’s current management plan to return to an outdated plan that is worse for our state’s economy, worse for our nation’s energy security, and contrary to federal law,” said Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alas.).
“This is a petroleum reserve, specifically designated for energy development, located within a state that already has tens of millions of acres of parks, refuges, and federal wilderness,” Murkowski said. “Sweeping restrictions like this—which are being imposed even as the Biden administration implores OPEC+ to produce more oil—demonstrate everything that is wrong with its energy policies.”
Similar criticisms came from her fellow Alaska Republicans Sen. Dan Sullivan and Rep. Don Young.
The remote location on the North Slope of Alaska, the costs of development, and the political and regulatory complications have dampened exploration efforts in the NPR-A, where ConocoPhillips Co. is the one notable oil operator.
BLM said its decision reflects the administration’s priority of reviewing existing oil and gas programs “to ensure balance” in the uses of federal lands.
The Interior Department, including BLM, still has a range of prospects across the lower 48 states for restrictions on the locations and numbers of exploration opportunities for oil and gas, and the department may move to increase royalties and fees, though such changes could require lengthy rulemaking procedures if Congress does not legislate higher royalties and fees through the still-pending $2 trillion budget bill.