US Interior Department Rescinds Coal Valuation Rule
The U.S. Department of the Interior said on Monday it has rescinded an Obama-era rule that reformed how energy companies value sales of oil, gas and coal extracted from federal and tribal land to protect taxpayers because it caused "confusion and uncertainty" for energy companies. "Repealing the valuation rule provides a clean slate to create workable valuation regulations," Zinke said in a statement.
U.S. to Review Energy Royalty Rates
The U.S. Interior Department said on Wednesday that it would form a new committee to review royalty rates collected from oil and gas drilling, coal mining and renewable energy production on federal lands to ensure taxpayers receive their full value. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said the committee would advise him on whether the government is getting a fair price from companies that lease public land for energy and natural resource development.
US Interior Department Outlines Federal Coal Reforms
The U.S. Interior Department on Wednesday recommended federal coal leasing reforms to ensure taxpayers receive the fair value of the fuel and account for its impact on climate change, but the incoming administration could derail those measures. The department's Bureau of Land Management released the findings from its first study of the federal coal program in three decades. The report comes a year…
79,000 Acres Offshore New York Auctioned for Wind Energy Development
Furthering President Obama’s comprehensive Climate Action Plan to create American jobs, develop domestic clean energy resources and cut carbon pollution, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Abigail Ross Hopper today announced the completion of the nation’s sixth competitive lease sale for renewable energy in federal waters. Today’s lease sale offered 79,350 acres offshore New York for potential wind energy development.
Offshore O&G Leasing Plan for 2017-2022 Announced
After considering more than 3.3 million public comments and holding 36 public meetings, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Abigail Hopper today released the final plan to guide future energy development for the Nation’s Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) for 2017-2022. The plan takes a balanced approach to best meet the nation’s energy needs…
Obama Administration Bars New Oil, Gas Exploration off Alaska
The Obama administration on Friday blocked new exploration for oil and gas in Arctic waters, in a win for environmental groups that had fought development of the ecologically fragile region. The Department of the Interior released a 2017 to 2022 leasing plan that blocked drilling in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas off northern Alaska. It also limited petroleum development in the Cook Inlet off south-central Alaska.
US Completes Rule to Curb Methane from Federal O&G Production
The U.S. Interior Department finalized rules on Tuesday aimed at preventing methane leaks from oil and gas production on federal and tribal lands, one of the last major Obama administration rules aimed at fighting climate change. Interior's Bureau of Land Management (BLM) said on Tuesday the rule, updating 30-year-old regulations that govern flaring, venting and natural gas leaks from oil and gas production, could avoid wasting up to 41 billion cubic feet (BCF) of natural gas per year.
New Task Force for California Offshore Renewables
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the State of California held the inaugural meeting of the California Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force today in Sacramento, Calif., to begin planning for future renewable wind and wave energy development opportunities in federal offshore waters along the Golden State. California is the 14th U.S. coastal state to form a renewable energy task force to provide critical information to the decision-making process…
Plan Introduced to Drive US Offshore Wind Energy
A new collaborative strategic plan has been published today which aims to continue accelerating the development of offshore wind energy in the United States. Announced by U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz and U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, the plan, entitled National Offshore Wind Strategy: Facilitating the Development of the Offshore Wind Industry in the United States, details the current state of offshore wind in the U.S.…
Wind Energy Development Offshore North Carolina Gets a Boost
As part of President Obama’s Climate Action Plan to create American jobs, develop domestic clean energy sources and cut carbon pollution, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Abigail Ross Hopper today announced a proposed lease sale for 122,405 acres offshore North Carolina for commercial wind energy leasing. The proposed lease is for the Kitty Hawk Wind Energy Area…
Lease Sale Proposed for Wind Energy Off North Carolina
A new lease sale has been proposed for 122,405 acres for commercial wind energy leasing offshore North Carolina. The proposed lease, announced today by U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Abigail Ross Hopper as part of President Obama’s Climate Action Plan, is for the Kitty Hawk Wind Energy Area, which BOEM identified in consultation…
Plan to Develop Wind Energy Offshore Hawaii Announced
As part of President Obama’s Climate Action Plan to create American jobs, develop clean energy sources and cut carbon pollution, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell today announced the first step to support wind energy development in federal waters offshore Hawaii, by issuing a call for information and nominations to gauge the wind industry’s interest in commercial wind leases in two areas offshore Oahu.
California Task Force Will Examine Offshore Renewables
Planning is underway for establishing an Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force between the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the State of California to examine development opportunities for offshore renewable energy along the Golden State. California Governor Jerry Brown requested formation of the task force in a May 12 letter to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell. The announcement…
Six Years after BP Spill, US Sets New Offshore Oil Safety Rules
The Obama administration on Thursday unveiled new oil well control rules to prevent the kind of blowout that happened six years ago on a BP Plc rig in the Gulf of Mexico. The Interior Department's Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement announced the finalized regulations, which include more stringent design requirements and operational procedures for offshore U.S. oil and gas operations.
Obama to Issue New Offshore Drilling Rules
The Obama administration will announce Thursday safety regulations for offshore oil and natural gas drilling to prevent the kind of explosion that happened six years ago on a BP rig in the Gulf of Mexico, an official told Reuters. The Department of Interior will unveil the final version of its well control regulations, which will require more stringent design and operating procedures for well control equipment used in offshore oil and gas operations…
BOEM Pushes Wind Energy Development Offshore NY
As part of President Obama’s Climate Action Plan to create American jobs, develop domestic clean energy sources and cut carbon pollution, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Abigail Ross Hopper today announced a major step in spurring wind energy development in federal waters offshore New York. BOEM has defined a Wind Energy Area totaling approximately 81,130 acres for potential commercial wind energy development.
NOIA Urges DOI to Retain Proposed OCS Lease Sale
National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) president Randall Luthi voiced support for the Atlantic Offshore Energy Caucus’s call for Department of Interior (DOI) retention of proposed Atlantic lease sale. “I am pleased that the Congressional Atlantic Offshore Energy Caucus has reinforced their support for oil and gas exploration and production off the coasts of Virginia, North Carolina, South…
U.S. Halts New coal Leases on Federal Land
U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell on Friday ordered a pause on issuing new coal leases on federal land in another step by the Obama administration to control climate change in the first major review of the country's coal program in three decades. The pause could last three years, Jewell said, while officials determine how to protect taxpayers' stake in coal sales from public lands and how burning coal could worsen climate change. Federal land accounts for over 40 percent of U.S.
Obama Administration to Reveal U.S. Coal Strategy
The Obama administration will announce the next steps in its effort "to strengthen and modernize" the nation's coal program later on Friday, the U.S. Interior Department said in a statement. U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, alongside other federal officials, will make the announcement at a 10 a.m. press conference, the department said in the statement. Reporting by Patrick Rucker
TransCanada sues U.S. over Keystone Rejection
TransCanada Corp sued the U.S government on Wednesday to reverse President Barack Obama's rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline, and also plans to seek $15 billion in damages from a trade tribunal. TranCanada's lawsuit in a federal court in Houston, Texas, called rejection of its permit to build the pipeline unconstitutional. The company's U.S. lawsuit does not seek monetary damages but wants the permit denial invalidated and seeks a ruling that no future president can block construction.
