API statement on court decision on 2007-2012 five-year plan

WASHINGTON, July 29, 2009 - The American Petroleum Institute issued the following statement following a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit that leasing under the 2007-2012 leasing plan in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) could move forward uninterrupted. In May, the court remanded and vacated the Department of Interior’s 2007-2012 Five-Year Outer Continental Shelf leasing plan. API on May 12 asked the court to change the remedy from “vacate and remand” to “remand.” API specifically argued to the court that the decision should not apply to the GOM or to any lease sales that have already occurred in any area, including Alaska. The Interior Department had sought similar relief from the court. On Tuesday, the court clarified that the decision only applies to areas in offshore Alaska and that the decision to vacate and remand is delayed until Interior reassesses its environmental sensitivity rankings and the leasing schedule for Alaska.

“The court made the right decision by allowing the continued production of oil and natural gas from Gulf of Mexico leases already issued in the Outer Continental Shelf and to future leases in the Gulf under the 2007-2012 Five-Year Program. Offshore oil and gas leasing under the program is responsible for thousands of well-paying American jobs, over $10 billion in much-needed revenue for federal, state and local governments. The nation’s energy security depends upon these resources. We encourage the Department of Interior to move quickly to re-do the environmental sensitivity analysis and maintain all scheduled past and future leasing in Alaska so that exploration and production activity and future leases sales under the 2007-2012 plan can take place in that state, home of vast oil and natural gas resources.”

Updated: July 29, 2009