Biden Admin Issues 30+ Drilling Permits

(Bloomberg) -- The Biden administration has issued at least 31 new drilling permits authorizing operations on federal land and coastal waters, despite an order putting political appointees in charge of the decisions.
The move signals those drilling authorizations are continuing to flow, despite President Joe Biden’s plan to pause oil and gas leasing -- and a Jan. 20 order temporarily putting decisions about oil and gas permits, mining operations, hiring and other matters in the hands of top Interior Department officials.
The order provoked alarm across the oil industry, as energy companies worried they wouldn’t get approval to drill new wells or swift approval to amend permits for ongoing drilling operations.
So far, there’s no sign of that blockade.
Offshore, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement has issued 22 drilling permits to eight companies since Jan. 20, when President Joe Biden was inaugurated. Recipients have included BP Exploration and Production Inc., Arena Offshore, Shell Offshore Inc. and a BHP Billiton Petroleum subsidiary, according to a Bloomberg News review of an Interior Department database.
The offshore approvals, for wells in the Gulf of Mexico, have been issued on a steady basis since Biden’s inauguration, including this week.
Onshore, the Bureau of Land Management issued nine permits for wells in Montana, New Mexico and Wyoming on Jan. 20 and Jan. 21, according to a review of a separate database by the watchdog group Accountable.US. The companies that received the authorizations were Jonah Energy LLC, Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Co. LP and Legacy Reserves Operating LP.
The Interior Department said in a statement that permits for valid, existing leases “are continuing to be reviewed and approved.”
The agency has maintained that the order, which is set to expire March 20, does not equate to a drilling permit freeze and does not apply to tribal lands.
© 2021 Bloomberg L.P.
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.
- USA Oil and Gas Employs Almost 1 Million in 2022
- US Could 'Steal' Green Energy Investments From Other Regions
- New Discoveries Make 2022 Highest Value Year In Over A Decade
- BofA Global Research Talks OPEC+ Meeting
- RRC Issues Weather Notice to Oil and Gas Groups
- BP's 2023 Energy Outlook Looks At Key Trends For Energy Transition
- Eni Pens $8 Billion Gas Deal With Libya's NOC
- Brent, WTI Net Length Continues to Build
- Exxon Beats Estimates, Posts Record $56B 2022 Profit
- Cnooc's $3B UK Portfolio Sale Has Stalled on Valuation Gap
- Is The USA Strategic Petroleum Reserve Stock Dangerously Low?
- Top Headlines: Valaris Employee Reported Missing from Rig
- What Bad Habits Should Oil and Gas Jobseekers Avoid?
- Police to Board Valaris Rig After Worker Reported Missing
- Big Oil Saw Record $199Bn Profits In 2022 But 2023 Will Be Different
- Governor Issues Disaster Declaration for Southeast Texas
- Risk Premium Embedded in USA NatGas Vanishes
- Offshore Rigs Set For Very Busy Year In 2023
- World Still Waiting to See What China Reopening Means
- Norwegian Tax Break Ensures Increase Of O&G Supply To Europe
- Valaris Employee Reported Missing from Rig
- Louisiana, Texas To Gain Thousands of Energy Jobs At Start of 2023
- Where Will WTI Oil Price Be at End 2023?
- Is the USA Shale Boom Over?
- Gasoline and Diesel Prices Expected to Fall
- Higher Oil Prices Have Not Led to More Exploration
- Talos Makes Two Commercial Discoveries In Gulf Of Mexico
- Shell Finds Gas In Pensacola High-Impact Well Off UK
- Iran Oil Gushes Into Global Market
- Will Oil Hit $100 Per Barrel in 2023?