DOI finalizes new waste prevention rule
The U.S. Department of the Interior’s (DOI’s) Bureau of Land Management (BLM) unveiled a final rule that revises the 2016 Waste Prevention Rule (also known as the Venting and Flaring Rule). The new rule will reduce unnecessary burdens on the private sector and restore proven regulations at a time when investment in federal onshore oil and gas is skyrocketing.
“Sadly, the flawed 2016 rule was a radical assertion of legal authority that stood in stark contrast to the longstanding understanding of Interior’s own lawyers,” said Deputy Secretary David Bernhardt. “The Trump administration is committed to innovative regulatory improvement and environmental stewardship, while appropriately respecting the clear and distinct authorities of the states, tribes, as well as the direction we receive from Congress.”
The BLM reviewed the 2016 rule and found it had considerable overlap in existing state, tribal and federal regulations. Additionally, the agency determined the previous administration underestimated the cost of the 2016 rule.
For more information, visit www.blm.gov or call (202) 208-3100.
LLOG Exploration brings deepwater Gulf wells on line
LLOG Exploration Co. LLC recently provided a detailed update on the status of its ongoing development projects and recent discoveries. Key highlights include:
• Successfully brought on line two wells to date in 2018, with six additional wells scheduled to be brought on line prior to the end of the year.
• Achieved initial production from the two-well Crown & Anchor oil discovery, which is producing at a combined gross rate of greater than 10,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
• Progressing several multi-well, multistage development projects as a result of prior exploratory successes.
For more information, visit www.llog. com or call (985) 801-4300.
Interior proposes oil and gas lease sale for Gulf of Mexico
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has proposed to offer 78 million acres for a region-wide lease sale scheduled for March 2019. The sale would include all available unleased areas in federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
Lease Sale 252, scheduled to be livestreamed from New Orleans, will be the fourth offshore sale under the 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program (2017-2022 OCS Program). Under this program, 10 region-wide lease sales are scheduled for the Gulf, where resource potential and industry interest are high and oil and gas infrastructure is well established. Two Gulf lease sales will be held each year and include all available blocks in the combined Western, Central and Eastern Gulf of Mexico Planning Areas.
Lease Sale 252 will include approximately 14,696 unleased blocks, located 3-231 miles offshore, in the Gulf’s Western, Central and Eastern planning areas in water depths ranging from 9 to more than 11,115 feet.
For more information, visit www.doi. gov or call (504) 731-7815.
Study: Oil sands GHG intensities falling
The emissions intensity of upstream Canadian oil sands production will continue to decline in coming years, falling to 30-percent below 2009 levels by 2030, a new report by IHS Markit said.
The report, titled “Greenhouse Gas Intensity of Oil Sands Production: Today and In the Future,” examined the past and future greenhouse gas (GHG) intensity of upstream oil sands production emissions in great detail. It includes a historical assessment of emissions intensity by year from 2009-2017, as well as an outlook for future emissions trends from 2018-2030.
The study found that over the past near-decade (2009-2017), upstream oil sands GHG emissions intensity (GHG per barrel produced) fell 21 percent and could fall by an additional 16-23 percent over the coming decade.
“The Canadian oil sands have a demonstrated track record of lowering emissions intensity,” said Kevin Birn, executive director of IHS Markit. “This study shows that trend will continue into the future, with additional reductions expected across the major forms of oil sands production.”
For more information, visit www.ihsmarkit.com or call (202) 463-8213.
