Arctic Oil Expansion Panned by Scientists
A group of 37 U.S.-based scientists whose research focuses on Arctic wildlife asked two U.S. senators in a letter on Thursday not to open the National Arctic Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas exploration, according to a copy seen by Reuters. The scientists, including several retired former officials from the Alaska Department of Fish & Game, the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, said in a letter to Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska…
Trump Interior Pick to Clarify Stance on Federal Land Development
A U.S. Senate committee will grill President-elect Donald Trump's pick to run the Department of the Interior, Representative Ryan Zinke of Montana, during a confirmation hearing on Tuesday that was likely to focus on how he would balance development and conservation on America's vast public lands. The former Navy SEAL commander, an avid hunter and angler, emerged as a surprise pick to head the department, in part because he has embraced federal stewardship of national parks…
Trump Interior Pick to Discuss Federal Land Policy
A U.S. Senate committee will grill President-elect Donald Trump's pick to run the Department of the Interior, Congressman Ryan Zinke of Montana, during a confirmation hearing on Tuesday that is likely to focus on how he would balance development and conservation on America's vast public lands. The former Navy SEAL commander, an avid hunter and angler, emerged as a surprise pick to head the department in part because he has embraced federal stewardship of national parks…
US DoE Unfairly Criticized: Kemp
The U.S. Department of Energy has become a lightning rod for criticism in parts of the Republican Party and the fossil fuels industry unhappy about the Obama administration's energy and climate policies. Presidential candidate Rick Perry promised to abolish the Department of Energy along with the Departments of Commerce and Education during a debate in 2011. Perry's views on the department's usefulness may evolve now he has been selected to lead it in a future Trump administration ("Trump picks climate sceptic Perry for top U.S. energy job", Reuters, Dec.
Obama's Call for $10 Oil Tax is DOA
President Barack Obama's final budget will propose a $10 per barrel oil tax, investing the proceeds in mass transit, high-speed rail, urban planning, highway upgrades and self-driving cars, among other programmes. "President Obama's 21st Century Clean Transportation System", outlined by the White House to reporters on Thursday, drew predictable praise from environmental groups and howls of outrage from oil producers. But the most important thing to remember about the clean transportation plan is that it stands no chance whatever of becoming law.
NOIA Applauds Senate Passage of OPENS Act
NOIA President Randall Luthi issued the following statement on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s passage of the OPENS Act, which will open new areas of the OCS to energy exploration and development, extend revenue sharing to participating coastal states, and lift the outdated ban on U.S. “The National Ocean Industries Association applauds the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee for passing the OPENS Act, which will strengthen America’s energy and national security…
US Sen. Murkowski Plans Bill to Kill Oil Export Ban
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski said on Thursday she will unveil a bill next week to reverse the U.S. oil export ban in an effort to build support for killing the 1970s-era restriction that drillers say threatens to choke the domestic energy boom. Murkowski, the Republican chairwoman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said she will unveil the bill on Tuesday, although it was uncertain when the measure would get a vote in her committee.
Kemp: U.S. Crude Export Controls Crumbling
In the three months ending in August, the United States and Canada swapped a record amount of crude oil with each other, one of the more bizarre consequences of outdated U.S. export controls. Because U.S. oil producers cannot export crude oil to any other country, crude is sent north to refineries in Canada, even if it would make more sense to ship it to refineries in Europe, Latin America or Asia. In some instances, crude is even shipped past U.S.
A History of U.S. Oil Export Controls
On Oct. 20, 1973, King Faisal of Saudi Arabia imposed a total embargo on oil shipments to the United States among other countries in response to their support for Israel during the Arab-Israeli war. Faisal's decision led directly to the introduction of a ban on U.S. crude exports, which remains in force in a slightly modified form and is now the focus of an intense struggle for reform. Following the U.S. mid-term elections next month, Congress will take up the issue again, a debate that would benefit from an understanding of the history behind the ban.
Congressional Study Questions Embargo-Era Oil Policies
Lifting restrictions on U.S. crude oil exports could actually lower fuel prices for U.S. motorists and other consumers by contributing to a drop in world oil prices, according to a report from an influential congressional watchdog released on Monday. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) also recommended that the U.S. Department of Energy review the size of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to ensure it remains appropriate as net oil imports fall.
Joe Barton: Lift Oil Export Ban
A senior U.S. Congressman from Texas has come out in full support of the United States lifting the 40-year old ban on crude oil exports, putting him at odds with fellow House Republicans wary of weighing in on the controversial issue. Rep. Joe Barton, who until now has maintained a relatively neutral public stance on a topic that has divided Republican members of the House energy and commerce committee, told Reuters in a statement that the time was right for the United States to overhaul its long-standing restrictions on exporting crude oil.
BLM Supports Expanding Oil and Gas Pilot Offices
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Director Neil Kornze today testified before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on a bill that would increase the efficiency of oil and gas permitting on public lands and coordination among agencies by continuing the BLM’s Oil and Gas Pilot Office program. During his testimony on S. 2440, the BLM Permit Processing Improvement Act of 2014, Kornze described the key role pilot offices play in supporting the…
Obama Stalls Drilling On Federal Lands: Kemp
The White House likes to claim a share of the credit for the drilling revolution that has transformed North America's energy production and security. Except the revolution has largely taken place on private rather than public land, and energy producers feel frustrated about the numerous obstacles and long delays in obtaining permission to drill in areas directly controlled by the administration. "Crude oil production has grown each year President Barack Obama has been in office to its highest level in 17 years…
Obama Stalls Drilling on Federal Lands
The White House likes to claim a share of the credit for the drilling revolution that has transformed North America's energy production and security. Except the revolution has largely taken place on private rather than public land, and energy producers feel frustrated about the numerous obstacles and long delays in obtaining permission to drill in areas directly controlled by the administration. "Crude oil production has grown each year President Barack Obama has been in office to its highest level in 17 years…
NOIA President Supports Energy Exploration, Development
During the testimony today at a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing on offshore energy revenue sharing, National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) president Randall Luthi urged Congress to take the next step in enhancing America’s energy security, energy reliability and American jobs by increasing access to the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) for energy exploration and development. “Only by providing additional oil and natural gas lease sales in more of the OCS can this theoretical revenue sharing become reality.
