The Obama administration issued a new drilling moratorium within the Gulf of Mexico Monday. A federal court judge, citing oil drilling jobs, overturned the first deep water drilling moratorium just last month. Ken Salazar vowed to come back with another one courts would accept. The first deep water drilling moratorium singled out drilling for oil at depths of 500 feet or more. The new drilling moratorium disregards depth and focuses only on drilling scenarios and know-how. The 2010 oil spill within the Gulf of Mexico dumped an estimated 140 million gallons of crude into the sea.
Post resource: New drilling moratorium issued as first drilling rig leaves gulf by Personal Money Store
New drilling moratorium applies to all depths
Last week, a federal appeals court rejected an appeal by the interior department to restore its first offshore deep-water drilling moratorium, which halted the approval of any new permits for deep-water projects and suspended drilling on 33 exploratory wells. It was reported by the Washington Post that Salazar made the announcement Monday, arguing that a drilling moratorium is still needed to ensure that oil and gas companies implement safety methods to lower risks – and are prepared to handle oil spills. Different from the first moratorium, which applied to drilling rigs in waters of more than 500 feet, the new one applies to any deep-water floating facility with drilling activities.
At risk is apparently oil drilling jobs
The new moratorium will last through Nov. 30th. Is driller prove safe measures have been taken, some permits might be allowed before then. Meanwhile, a New Orleans business group explained that the economic damage from a drilling moratorium would be worse than the toll taken by the oil spill within the Gulf of Mexico 2010. It was reported by Business Week that Michael Hecht of Greater New Orleans Inc. told the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Spill and Offshore Drilling at a listening to the six-month drilling ban may affect as much as 24,000 oil drilling jobs in Louisiana. Hecht assumed the economic impact from the BP oil spill would be dwarfed by the impact from the moratorium.
Oil drilling companies can’t be trusted
Salazar strongly disagrees with Hecht’s assessment of the outcome. In a statement Salazar said “A pause on deepwater drilling is essential and appropriate to protect communities, coasts, and wildlife from the risks that deep water drilling at the moment poses. I am basing my decision on evidence that grows every day of the industry’s inability within the deep water to contain a catastrophic blowout, respond to an oil spill and to operate safely.”
First drilling rig leaves the gulf
At the national commission listening to, the CEO of a service provider that is for offshore drillers said drilling rigs will leave the Gulf because of the drilling moratorium. At least one has proven him right so far. It was reported by the Houston Chronicle that on July 9 Diamond Offshore announced that its Ocean Endeavor drilling rig will leave the Gulf of Mexico and move to Egyptian waters right away — making it the first to abandon the gulf in the wake of the BP oil spill and also the drilling moratorium being tested within the courts.
Find more details here:
Washington Post
washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/12/AR2010071203003.html?hpid=topnews
businessweek.com
businessweek.com/news/2010-07-12/economic-damage-of-drilling-ban-to-dwarf-oil-spill-hecht-says.html
Houston Chronicle
chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/7101738.html
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