IADC Disapproves of Recent Limitations on Energy Development in Alaska
For Immediate Release
Houston (11 September 2023) – The International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) asserts that the U.S. Department of the Interior’s (DOI) recent decision to cancel the seven remaining leases in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) Coastal Plain is short-sighted and will very likely have long-lasting consequences.
IADC President Jason McFarland explains: “This decision by the Biden-Harris administration is a notable setback for U.S. energy production. It signals that domestic energy production is not a priority to this administration, and it undermines the contributions of U.S. oil and gas supplies to a robust, environmentally conscious global energy mix. Oil and natural gas will continue to play a major role in meeting the demand for the affordable, reliable, and efficient energy that underpins a 21st-century world. IADC strongly encourages U.S. officials to reassess this decision in lieu of a more balanced approach when considering the possibilities for energy production from federal lands and waters in Alaska and across the nation.”
Background
On 6 September, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) released a draft supplemental environmental impact statement (SEIS), which concluded that the original 2021 ANWR Coastal Plain lease sale was flawed and did not undergo sufficient analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). As a result, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland authorized the cancellation of the seven remaining leases of the nine originally issued in the 6 January 2021 lease sale.
ABOUT IADC
The International Association Drilling Contractors (IADC) is a non-profit trade association that is the global leader in advancing and promoting innovative technology and safe practices that bring oil and gas to the world’s consumers. More information.
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