Idiot
Psaki has made the claim about “unused” federal leases
before. It has become a line the White House pivots to when
pressed to explain why it isn’t doing more to support American oil and gas production – with soaring demand putting upward pressure on prices and with much of Europe at the mercy of its top energy provider, Russia. Key facts about federal leases:
- The law already requires companies to either produce oil and/or gas on leases or return the leases to the government – the so-called “use it or lose it” provision – generally in the first 10 years.
- When a company acquires a lease, it makes a significant financial investment at the beginning of the lease in the form of a non-refundable bonus bid and pays additional rent until and unless it begins producing.
- For federal onshore, the Mineral Leasing Act prevents any one company from locking up unproductive excessive federal acreage.
- Developing a lease takes years and substantial effort to determine whether the underlying geology holds commercial quantities of oil and/or gas. The lengthy process to develop them from a lease often is extended by administrative and legal challenges at every step along the way.
westernpriorities.org
.....
