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California Attorney General Bonta asks the Court to stay Energy Secretary Wright’s Order directing Sable, under the Defense Production Act to restart production and preliminarily enjoin Defendants, and all those acting in concert with Defendants (i.e. Sable), from enforcing or relying on it. See the attached Federal Court filing.
The AG’s irreparable harm and public interest arguments seem particularly weak, and this may not be the best time to attempt to halt a 20+% increase in California oil production.
Posted in California, energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, pipelines, Regulation | Tagged AG Rob Bonta, Chris Wright, irreparable harm, litigation, production restart, Sable Offshore | Leave a Comment »
API’s letter is attached. Key points:
- Requesting a 60 day extension (double the comment period specified by BOEM)
- Need more time to:
- review the detailed proposed changes
- conduct studies to inform agency
- analyze the studies and data
- consider alternatives
- organize, complete, and review the findings of subject matter workgroups
In API’s favor:
- Agencies have discretion on extending comment periods.
- 60 days is typically considered the minimum comment period; 90 days would have been more appropriate for this proposal.
- API members are clearly affected parties.
- The BOEM proposal relaxes financial assurance requirements for smaller companies while increasing predecessor lessee risk exposure. Those predecessors would typically be API members.
- There are divisions within the industry which complicate trade association commenting.
On the other hand:
- API’s letter is dated May 1, just one week prior to the end of the comment period.
- The letter was not posted at Regulations.gov until May 6, 2 days before the end of the comment period. Only those tracking the comment letters would have been aware of the request even at this late date.
- As of early this morning (May 7th), the docket still specifies a May 8 due date for comments.
- An extension could be viewed as inequitable to other concerned parties who made special efforts to honor the deadline.
Comments:
- This is why it’s best to specify a reasonable comment period at the time the regulation is proposed, and make it clear that there will be no extension. That way, everyone is treated the same.
- For this proposal, 90 days would have been reasonable.
- Given the number of significant issues that need to be addressed, the best outcome for this rule would be a re-proposal. See the comments submitted by John Smith and me.
Posted in decommissioning, energy policy, Regulation | Tagged API, decommissioning, extension of comment period, financial assurance, request to BOEM | Leave a Comment »
Attached are my comments on BOEM’s proposed revisions to the decommissioning financial assurance regulations. These comments were submitted to Regulations.gov yesterday (3 days early 😀). Bud
Concluding Remarks
- MMA’s highest priority must be assuring that facilities are safely decommissioned without public funding. Supplemental financial assurance determinations and lease assignment approvals must be consistent with that priority.
- Predecessor liability is an important financial assurance principle, but legal boundaries and administrative procedures must be clearly established.
- Safety and compliance are inextricably related to financial performance, and must be considered in determining supplemental assurance requirements.
- Using reserve estimates to reduce supplemental assurance exposes taxpayers to geologic and accounting risks.
- Unacceptable public risks have resulted from financial assurance decisions intended to advance offshore wind development.
Posted in California, decommissioning, energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, Regulation | Tagged BOEM, comments, decommissioning, financial assurance, predecessor liability, proposed regulation, reserve estimates, safety and compliance | 1 Comment »
An apology letter from the California Coastal Commission (CCC) to SpaceX was part of a lawsuit settlement. SpaceX alleged political bias in the commission’s 2024 decision to deny increased Falcon 9 launches at Vandenberg Space Force Base, based on comments about Elon Musk’s political views and SpaceX’s labor practices.
Excerpt:
“In 2024, the Commission reviewed consistency determinations by the U.S. Space Force for SpaceX’s Falcon 9 launch program at Vandenberg Space Force Base. During that review, some Commissioners made negative comments about SpaceX’s labor practices and its Chief Executive Officer’s political views. The Commission acknowledges that these political comments were irrelevant to the Commission’s consistency review and were improper, and the Commissioners apologize for those comments.”
AI confirms my suspicions that formal CCC apologies are highly unusual 😉
Posted in California, Regulation | Tagged California Coastal Commission, launches, Sable Offshore, SpaceX, Vandenberg, written apology | Leave a Comment »
Update: Another EIA revision to Gulf of America oil production for Dec. 2025 (1.994 to 1.985 million bopd) means that 2019 retains the production record by the narrowest of margins – 1.898 to 1.897 million bopd. Stay tuned because this may not be the final word 😉.
Per EIA, Feb. 2026 production dipped a bit to 1.931 million bopd (chart below).
Meanwhile, California OCS oil production for FEB continued at about 10,000 bopd. This number may increase a bit for March, and more for April data when the first Sable sales are included. A big increase, by as much as 500%, should be apparent in the June report barring a court ordered shutdown.
Posted in California, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General | Tagged 2025 vs. 2019, California oil production, Gulf of America, record oil production, Sable Offshore | Leave a Comment »
Sable’s updated PowerPoint presentation is attached.
Also, the 2025 compensation package for Sable CEO Jim Flores is attracting attention. Flores received $76 million in total compensation. The bulk of his pay came from more than $69 million in stock awards, alongside a $1.3 million salary and a $3.9 million bonus.
Posted in California, Offshore Energy - General | Tagged compensation, Jim Flores, PowerPoint, Sable Offshore, update | Leave a Comment »
Equinor has cut planned investments in renewable energy by roughly EUR 3.5bn for 2026–2027, while the company maintains and expects growth in oil and gas production.
Cheap shot from panicked Ørsted investor:
“From a sustainability perspective, it’s certainly sad that one of the most ‘green’ fossil fuel companies now turns out to have merely been a ‘tourist’ in the green sector, but unfortunately, that’s just the way things are these days,” says Anders Schelde, investment chief at AkademikerPension, according to Finans.
Perhaps the premium for climate virtue signaling has shrunk, and Equinor, like other energy giants, is making a prudent business decision for its shareholders, which include the Norwegian govt.
Meanwhile, what are the implications for Equinor’s offshore wind investments in the US? Equinor’s embattled Empire Wind project is probably too far along to reverse course. Their Central Atlantic (Lease 0557) and California (Lease 0563, Atlas Wind) may be a different story. However, buyback negotiations would be complicated by the Empire Wind situation, and perhaps by the Norwegian government’s 2/3 ownership. On the other hand, Equinor is a significant oil and gas leaseholder in the Gulf of America, so they would have ample options for investing wind lease rebates.
Posted in Norway, Offshore Energy - General, Offshore Wind | Tagged Atlas Wind, California offshore wind sale, Central Atlantic Wind, Empire Wind, Equinor, Equinor changes emphasis, Orsted | Leave a Comment »
From the Dept. of the Interior:
Why This Change Is Happening
The transition reflects more than a decade of operational experience managing offshore resources. By consolidating the planning, permitting, inspection, and enforcement responsibilities currently divided between BOEM and BSEE, the Department aims to:
- Improve coordination and consistency
- Reduce duplication of efforts
- Strengthen oversight and environmental safeguards
- Modernize organizational structure
All current regulatory responsibilities and protections will remain in place throughout the transition. There will be no disruption to permitting, environmental reviews, or enforcement activities.
What to Expect
- Phased Transition: Internal alignment activities begin soon.
- No Regulatory Rollbacks: Existing requirements remain in full effect.
- New Website and Branding: The Marine Minerals Administration’s full digital presence will launch in the coming months.
- This page will be updated regularly
Posted in energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, Regulation | Tagged BOEM, Department of the Interior, BSEE, Marine Minerals Administration, consolidation, transition | Leave a Comment »
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 
BOEM extends comment period on the financial assurance proposal, but only by one week!
May 7, 2026 by offshoreenergy
BOEM has extended the public comment period and will accept comments on the proposed rule through 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on May 15, 2026.
Interesting decision, and not the one many of us expected.
Posted in decommissioning, energy policy, Regulation | Tagged BOEM, decommissioning, extension of comment period, financial assurance, proposed regulation | Leave a Comment »