The U.S. Department of Interior announced Tuesday that more than
half of all onshore federal leases granted in the United States have
seen no drilling.
The announcement comes from a review of U.S. oil and gas production requested by President Barack Obama. The president focused Wednesday on U.S. energy goals and its response to rising oil prices.
We continue to support safe and responsible domestic energy production, and as this report shows millions of acres that have already been leased to industry for oil and gas productions sit idle, Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in a press release. These are resources that belong to the American people, and they expect those supplies to be developed in a timely and responsible manner and with a fair return to taxpayers.
The fact that so many leases sit idle comes as no surprise to federal land managers or those in the oil and gas industry who have been debating federal leasing practices for years. The industry wants more land leased faster and with less regulation, while federal land managers want industry to develop the leases it already has.
As we continue to offer new areas onshore and offshore for leasing, as we have done over the last two years, we will also be exploring ways to provide incentives to companies to bring production online quickly and safely, Salazar said.
For onshore leases in the U.S., the review found that about 45 percent of all leases and about 57 percent of all leased acres are inactive.
In Wyoming: About 33 percent of leased federal acres in Wyoming are producing oil and/or gas, according to the review. That adds up to almost 7,200 permits to drill on public lands that have yet to be drilled, according to a story by Greenwire, an online news organization that covers environmental and energy policy.
About one-third of the 7,200 unused permits in Wyoming are for coal-bed methane gas wells in the Powder River Basin, Dave Murphy, BLM s acting division chief for fluid minerals, told Greenwire.
Industry representatives have argued that part of the reason for the idle leases, at least in the Powder River Basin, is the current low price for natural gas. Also, many of the areas where companies hold leases only can be drilled during a short period each year because of strict environmental regulations.
The announcement comes from a review of U.S. oil and gas production requested by President Barack Obama. The president focused Wednesday on U.S. energy goals and its response to rising oil prices.
We continue to support safe and responsible domestic energy production, and as this report shows millions of acres that have already been leased to industry for oil and gas productions sit idle, Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in a press release. These are resources that belong to the American people, and they expect those supplies to be developed in a timely and responsible manner and with a fair return to taxpayers.
The fact that so many leases sit idle comes as no surprise to federal land managers or those in the oil and gas industry who have been debating federal leasing practices for years. The industry wants more land leased faster and with less regulation, while federal land managers want industry to develop the leases it already has.
As we continue to offer new areas onshore and offshore for leasing, as we have done over the last two years, we will also be exploring ways to provide incentives to companies to bring production online quickly and safely, Salazar said.
For onshore leases in the U.S., the review found that about 45 percent of all leases and about 57 percent of all leased acres are inactive.
In Wyoming: About 33 percent of leased federal acres in Wyoming are producing oil and/or gas, according to the review. That adds up to almost 7,200 permits to drill on public lands that have yet to be drilled, according to a story by Greenwire, an online news organization that covers environmental and energy policy.
About one-third of the 7,200 unused permits in Wyoming are for coal-bed methane gas wells in the Powder River Basin, Dave Murphy, BLM s acting division chief for fluid minerals, told Greenwire.
Industry representatives have argued that part of the reason for the idle leases, at least in the Powder River Basin, is the current low price for natural gas. Also, many of the areas where companies hold leases only can be drilled during a short period each year because of strict environmental regulations.
