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All 26 workers were safely evacuated from DCOR’s Platform Habitat. The big question now is the fitness of the structure for continuing well plugging/abandonment and platform decommissioning.
As indicated in the attached letter, BSEE had informed DCOR that their Pitas Point Unit leases (where Platform Habitat is located) expired on 3/15/2016 owing to the cessation of well operations 6 months prior. Following the Interior Board of Land Appeals (IBLA) May 7, 2021 affirmation of BSEE’s directive, DCOR was notified that they must permanently plug all wells within one year of the lease termination (i.e. one year after the 2021 IBLA decision). I’ll include the informative IBLA decision in a future post.
Although details have not been shared, it appears that well plugging operations were still ongoing on 5/11/2026 when the fire occurred. According to BSEE’s borehole file, most of the Habitat wells have been temporarily abandoned, but few have been permanently abandoned, and several are still completed (i.e. neither temporarily nor permanently abandoned).
The risks and costs associated with delaying well plugging and abandonment have once again been demonstrated at Habitat. Fortunately, there were no casualties or pollution.
With regard to overall safety compliance, DCOR is the violations leader in the Pacific Region. In 2025 and 2026 (YTD) they were cited for 70 violations, 66 of which required component or facility shut-ins. The age of the 9 DCOR platforms (installed by others between 1968 and 1984) has likely contributed to the compliance challenges.
BSEE spreadsheets for 2020-2024 show 6 incidents at Platform Habitat. BSEE’s incident summaries are pasted in the second attachment.
Neither DCOR nor BSEE has issued a statement on the Habitat fire.
This serious incident further demonstrates the concerns expressed by John Smith and me about the relaxed decommissioning financial assurance regulations proposed by BOEM.
Posted in accidents, California, natural gas, Offshore Energy - General, Regulation, well control incidents | Tagged DCOR, decommissioning, expired lease, fire, incidents, platform condition, platform habitat, violations, well plugging | Leave a Comment »
In announcing its annual licensing round, Norway expresses strong support for offshore exploration and production:
The oil and gas industry is crucial for Norway and for Europe. The government is today announcing new exploration areas in the APA (Allocations in Predefined Areas) to further develop the petroleum sector, so that it can continue to create great value for the community, lay the foundation for good jobs throughout the country, ensure our common welfare and contribute to Europe’s energy security and safety, says Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre.
Kudos to Norway for the strong, unequivocal announcement. Consistent acreage offerings are important in sustaining offshore production:
Allocations in Predefined Areas (APA) are an annual licensing round that covers the best-known exploration areas on the continental shelf. Through the APA scheme, oil companies gain predictability regarding access to exploration acreage, which is important for a long-term industry such as the petroleum industry. After more than 50 years of exploration activity, the APA scheme today covers the majority of the area that is opened and available on the Norwegian continental shelf.
This is what it takes to sustain oil production at about 2 million barrels/day and gas production at over 10 billion cu ft/day.
Norway also has an exemplary risk and performance-based regulatory regime administered by Havtil.
Perhaps less pragmatic, in the opinion of this observer, are these policies:
- Electrification of distant offshore platforms: Given the reliability, cost, and cable vulnerability concerns, Equinor has wisely scratched some of their electrification plans.
- Carbon sequestration (disposal) projects: high cost, added risk, questionable benefits (hopeful that the Gulf of America carbon disposal era will end before it begins)
Posted in energy policy, Norway, Offshore Energy - General, Regulation | Tagged carbon disposal, electrification policy, Jonas Gahr Støre, licensing round, Norway, support for offshore production | Leave a Comment »
- Crew safely evacuated
- Prompt response by the USCG and local fire agencies
- Gas leak during decommissioning operations
- Fire began at 0700 PT; controlled by 1100 PT
- 45 year old platform; no longer producing
- Operated by DCOR LLC
- No environmental threat
- Habitat was the only California OCS platform that produced dry natural gas (minimal oil or condensate)
Posted in accidents, California, well control incidents | Tagged California, Coast Guard, DCOR, decommissioning, fire, gas leak, no injuries, platform habitat, Santa Barbara | Leave a Comment »
Scientific discovery, technological innovation, and human ingenuity are not finite!
The U.S. Geological Survey released its assessment of undiscovered gas and oil in the Bossier Formation along the Gulf Coast. USGS assesses that there are technically recoverable resources of 343.5 trillion cubic feet of gas – enough to supply the United States for more than 10 years at the current rate of consumption.
The USGS quantitatively assessed three continuous and one conventional AUs (assessment units) for undiscovered oil, gas, and natural gas liquid resources in the Bossier Formation. The estimated mean total resources in the four AUs are 3 million barrels of oil (MMBO), with an F95–F5 range from 1 to 8 MMBO; 343,499 billion cubic feet of gas (BCFG), or 343.5 trillion cubic feet of gas, with an F95–F5 range from 103,943 to 611,703 BCFG; and 374 million barrels of natural gas liquids (MMBNGL), with an F95–F5 range from 109 to 721 MMBNGL (table 2).
So much for the depletion of our natural gas resources! Long-time gas advocates knew that geologic studies, technology, and ingenuity would provide the resource, and that has been demonstrated in spades!
Kudos to USGS, headed by my former colleague Ned Mamula, for their important resource assessment studies!
Posted in energy, natural gas | Tagged 343.5 tcf, Bossier Formation, natural gas abundance, Ned Mamula, resource assessment, technology, USGS | Leave a Comment »
New York City Comptroller Mark Levine has urged ExxonMobil shareholders to reject the proposal to move their corporate headquarters to Texas, which he claims has “less robust” shareholder rights. Apparently, he would rather that XOM remain in a State where they can more easily be targeted for frivolous law suits.
James Copland, Senior Fellow and Director of Legal Policy at the Manhattan Institute : “rather than focus on improving New York City’s business climate, the comptroller is more interested in opposing ExxonMobil’s proposed redomiciling from New Jersey to Texas, solidifying its operations in a less hostile business environment.”
Mr. Levine’s chutzpah is indeed impressive, even by NYC standards, but shareholders will not vote against their own financial interest.
ExxonMobil’s move means that the three feature pieces of John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil legacy will now be domiciled in Texas – Standard Oil of New Jersey (Exxon), Standard Oil of New York (Mobil), and Standard Oil of California (Chevron).
Posted in energy policy, Regulation, Uncategorized | Tagged chutzpah, Comptroller, ExxonMobil, John Rockefeller, New York City, relocation, Standard Oil, Texas, XOM | Leave a Comment »
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 | 1 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 | 1 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 Offshore Energy - General, California, Regulation, Gulf of Mexico, decommissioning, energy policy | Tagged decommissioning, BOEM, financial assurance, comments, predecessor liability, proposed regulation, reserve estimates, safety and compliance | 1 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 »