MMS tweaks 5 year lease sale schedule

• OCS Lease Sales [55468 bytes]

U.S. Minerals Management Service has made only minor changes to its proposed 5 year offshore leasing program.

The program for 1997-2002 limits sales to the Gulf of Mexico and Offshore Alaska. It proposes annual sales in the central and western gulf, an eastern gulf sale in 2001, and annual Alaskan sales in five regions.

MMS now will submit the program to Congress, and if there is no objection, the plan will go into effect in late October (OGJ, Feb. 19, 1996, p. 24; Aug. 14, 1995, p. 16).

Changes

In the final proposal, MMS made two changes from its previous proposal.

For a sale in the Beaufort Sea off Alaska in the year 2000, it deleted 416 blocks east of Barter Island.

MMS explained, "Eskimo whalers believe this area of the eastern Beaufort Sea is an important feeding ground for the bowhead whale. Retained for (leasing) consideration is the near shore area, which includes active leases and is adjacent to areas where future state oil and gas lease sales are anticipated."

MMS also deleted 22 blocks within 15 miles of Alabama's coast from an eastern Gulf of Mexico sale planned for 2001.

"This recognizes state and local concerns about the possible adverse impact of any additional visible natural gas and oil structures on the tourism industry."

However, MMS added to that sale area 384 blocks in deep water more than 100 miles off Alabama and Florida.

It explained, "The addition encompasses all nearby existing deepwater leases in the eastern gulf adjacent to deepwater tracts in the central Gulf of Mexico and is intended to recognize the natural gas and oil industry's desire to expand the area of leasing consideration in a way that is acceptable to other MMS constituents."

Resource potential

MMS said the sale areas in the 5 year plan contain economically recoverable resources estimated at nearly 45 tcf of gas and more than 5 billion bbl of oil, with estimated net economic benefits of more than $8 billion for the nation.

Cynthia Quarterman, MMS director, said, "We believe this 5 year program carefully balances customer and stakeholder concerns, and that it will best meet the national energy needs at this time."

She said it reflects three Interior Department policy objectives: consensus-based decision making, science-based decision making, and the use of natural gas as an environmentally preferable fuel.

State concerns

MMS formed the Alaska Regional Stakeholders Task Force to help it consider issues relating to Alaska sales.

MMS said the 5-year plan reflects that task force's recommendations.

Carol Hartgen, MMS project director for the 5-year plan, said Interior Sec. Bruce Babbitt is considering whether to proceed with an Alaskan Cook Inlet sale planned for this fall, under the current 5 year plan.

Alaska has objected to the sale, although it plans two lease sales in state waters in Cook Inlet.

Although Alabama had previously supported drilling off its coast, Gov. Fob James Jr. requested a 15-mile no-drilling zone in a July 30 letter to Quarterman.

He said, "Although there have been no measurable adverse impacts to the tourism industry on the Alabama Gulf Coast directly attributable to the installation and operation of oil and gas facilities" off Alabama, there is widespread local opposition to additional visible oil and gas structures.

James also noted the Alabama House of Representatives adopted a resolution opposing offshore drilling on July 23.

Copyright 1996 Oil & Gas Journal. All Rights Reserved.