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The U.S. Department of the Interior’s (DOI) Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has announced that it is taking steps to comply with an order issued by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana regarding Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Lease Sale 261.
“The United States is seeking an emergency stay of this order to allow time for a more orderly lease sale process,” BOEM said in a statement sent to Rigzone over the weekend.
“In the event such relief is not granted, Lease Sale 261 will be conducted on September 27, 2023, and in accordance with the court’s order, BOEM will include lease blocks that were previously excluded due to concerns regarding potential impacts to the Rice’s whale distribution in the Gulf of Mexico,” it added.
“BOEM will also remove portions of a related stipulation meant to address potential impacts to Rice’s whale from the lease terms for the leases that may be issued as a result of Lease Sale 261,” BOEM continued.
In the statement, BOEM said it is extending the bid submission period to 3pm CST on September 26, 2023.
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Lake Charles Division, revealed in a document released on September 21 that government defendants were ordered to proceed with Lease Sale 261, absent challenged terms, by September 30, 2023.
Motions for preliminary injunction seeking to halt the addition of a term to Lease Sale 261 by the BOEM, and the withdrawal of six million acres from that sale, were granted by the court, the document showed.
Commenting on the preliminary injunction granted by the court, Ryan Meyers, the American Petroleum Institute’s Senior Vice President and General Counsel, said in a statement posted on the API website, “we are pleased that the court has hit the brakes on the Biden Administration’s ill-conceived effort to restrict American development of reliable, lower-carbon energy in the Gulf of Mexico”.
“[The] decision will allow Lease Sale 261 to move forward as directed by Congress in the Inflation Reduction Act, removing the unjustified restrictions on vessel traffic imposed by the Department of the Interior and restoring the more than six million acres to the sale,” he added.
“This decision is an important step toward greater certainty for American energy workers, a more robust Gulf Coast economy and a stronger future for U.S. energy security,” Meyers continued.
Also commenting on the preliminary injunction, Erik Milito, the President of the National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA), said in a statement sent to Rigzone, “the injunction is a necessary and welcome response from the court to an unnecessary decision by the Biden administration”.
“The removal of millions of highly prospective acres and the imposition of excessive restrictions stemmed from a voluntary agreement with activist groups that circumvented the law, ignored science, and bypassed public input,” he added.
“In a period when inflation is increasing expenses for Americans, particularly in terms of gasoline prices, we must fully harness America’s energy production capabilities, particularly those offshore. Our leaders should stop ignoring the vast benefits that U.S. offshore oil and gas production provides to Americans,” he continued.
“This includes an abundance of energy resources, high-paying job opportunities, environmentally responsible low carbon output, support for coastal resilience and restoration, and enhanced national security, among numerous other benefits,” Milito went on to state.
Prior to the release of BOEM’s statement on the court order, Rigzone asked the DOI, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and the White House for comment on the API and NOIA’s statements, and on the preliminary injunction itself.
A DOI spokesperson told Rigzone that it was reviewing the decision, the DOE referred Rigzone to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and the White House has not yet responded to Rigzone’s request at the time of writing.
Rigzone has since contacted the DOJ asking for comment on the API and NOIA statements and on the preliminary injunction. A spokesperson for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division declined to comment.
To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com
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