Murkowski: De-facto Offshore Exploration Ban Still in Place

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, released the following statement today in response to the Obama Administration’s decision to lift the official suspension on deepwater exploration in the Gulf of Mexico.

“Officially lifting the moratorium on deepwater exploration in the Gulf of Mexico is a small step in the right direction, but it falls far short of resolving the regulatory uncertainty that continues to cost jobs and weaken America’s energy security,” Murkowski said.

“Despite this announcement, a de-facto moratorium still exists on all offshore exploration, including shallow water projects in Alaska that were never covered by the original moratorium, in the form of regulatory uncertainty and a slow-down of the issuance of required drilling permits,” Murkowski said. “As the Administration takes steps to improve safety, it must also provide a predictable and stable regulatory environment for America’s energy producers.”

Murkowski, the ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, fully supports improving the safety of offshore activities and has introduced legislation to overhaul the Department of Interior agency responsible for overseeing offshore energy production.

That agency, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), released two interim final regulations last week, but indicated additional rulemakings would be forthcoming, adding to the uncertainty that has sidelined investment by Gulf Coast energy producers. BOEM Director Michael Bromwich referred to offshore rulemaking as a “dynamic regulatory environment.”

“The Obama Administration must put an end to the current ‘dynamic regulatory environment’ and allow companies to put people back to work safely producing America’s energy,” Murkowski said. “Such uncertainty is counterproductive. It not only scares off investment at a time when the country faces great economic challenges, it also reduces the amount of scientific information available to regulators.”

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For further information, please contact Robert Dillon at 202.224.6977 or robert_dillon@energy.senate.gov or Megan Hermann at 202.224.7875 or megan_hermann@energy.senate.gov.

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Murkowski: De-facto Offshore Exploration Ban Still in Place