Happy Thursday!
Well, we knew
that the saga would continue and it is still chugging along!
Let’s catch
you up on the unfolding drama! Back at
the end of August the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management (BOEM) was being sued by the Oil and Gas Industry for reducing the
acreage by about 6 million acres and making new terms and restrictions for the Lease
Sale 261 because of the endangered species which lives in the northern Gulf of
Mexico and the environmentalists sued to stop the sale. On September 21, 2023, the Oil and Gas
Industry had their day in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of
Louisiana, and it was ruled to return to the original terms and conditions of
the lease sale. The BOEM and environmentalists filed an emergency request with
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in New Orleans by the
end of the week. On September 25, 2023, the
appellate court granted the sale to be delayed until November 8, 2023 to consider
the emergency request. Well, you are
caught up in this unfolding drama!
Did anyone see
the BOEM on October 5, 2023, they issued a press release, “BOEM Announces
Updated Terms for Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Lease Sale – Reflects Court-directed
timing and terms”? In the announcement,
it speaks about the Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Lease Sale 261 and the removal of the updated terms and
conditions of the sale as stipulated by the courts. BOEM has scheduled the lease sale for November
8, 2023 and they will be posting the notice in the Federal Register on October,
6, 2023. As of late there has been no
ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in New
Orleans from the 3-judge panel which is still considering the emergency request
filed by the BOEM and environmentalists.
It will be interesting to see how this saga will play out in the next
few weeks, and if the sale will happen in November. If you would like to read more of the announcement
from the BOEM, please click the link: BOEM Announces Updated Terms for Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Lease Sale | Bureau ofOcean Energy Management.
If you would
like to see the unpublished notice of the lease sale in the Federal Register or
wait until October 6th, 2023 for the published version, please click
the link: Federal Register :: Public Inspection: Oil and Gas Lease Sale: Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf Sale 261.
If you would
like to see the lease terms and conditions map for Lease Sale 261, please
click the link: FNOS Lease Terms and Economic Conditions map Sale 261 Nov (boem.gov).
If you would
like to read more about this soap opera caused by the Lease Sale 261, please
see our Blog on Wednesday, September 27, 2023 and Monday, August 28, 2023.
If you would
like help in looking into how to transport your product or help reduce your
carbon-foot print, contact us via the email in the blog and check out our ESC's website!