October 17, 2022 10:48am EDT
Biden admin keeps delaying oil and gas permitting due to math error
Biden admin math error is having a 'real impact' on offshore oil production, industry group tells FOX Business
By Thomas Catenacci FOXBusiness
The Biden administration has failed to remedy a mathematical glitch in its oil and gas permitting review process, causing a system backlog and a decrease in offshore energy production.
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the agency responsible for determining wildlife impacts of offshore energy projects, acknowledged the mistake in April, but has since opted against quickly remedying the situation, according to industry group National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA). For months, the agency's faulty modeling has overestimated wildlife "takes," the impacts of drilling on sea animals, when reviewing permit requests for proposed oil and gas projects on existing leases in the Gulf of Mexico.
"These permitting delays have a real impact on the industry's ability to safely and efficiently explore, drill and produce energy in the offshore sector," NOIA President Erik Milito told FOX Business in an interview. "It is a significant concern when it comes to not just energy production, but when it comes to ensuring that investment stays in the U.S. and that we can maintain the jobs, the high-paying jobs that go along with this activity."
"We've heard specifically from companies that — without getting these permits process in a timely manner, they're not able to do the seismic work which is required for them to move forward with their exploration and drilling plans, which means that they're delayed in moving forward with their programs," he continued. "It holds back production and investment in the U.S."
Milito added that the delayed permitting process has caused uncertainty among drilling and exploration companies who he said are "sitting around" instead of increasing oil production.
Gasoline prices, which are largely determined by oil prices, surpassed $4 per gallon last week, 22% higher than a year ago and 61% higher than when President Biden took office, according to the Energy Information Administration.
The NMFS, which is a subagency within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), first proposed the rule impacting how it analyzes wildlife takes for oil and gas permitting in the Gulf of Mexico in January 2021. The rule took effect in April 2021 and originally slated to expire in 2026.
However, on April 5, nearly a year after the rule was finalized, NOIA, the American Petroleum Institute and the Energeo Alliance penned a letter to NOAA Administrator Richard Spinrad, informing him of the federal government's error causing a permitting backlog. The groups urged the administration stop the delay immediately.
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https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/biden-admin-keeps-delaying-oil-gas-permitting-math-error
