Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Posts Tagged ‘Secretary of the Interior’

RIP Dirk Kempthorne, Secretary of the Interior, 2006-2009

Posted in energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, tagged , , , , , , , on April 28, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Dirk Kempthorne participating in Lease Sale 206 which garnered a record $3.7 billion in high bids!

I was saddened to learn about the passing of Dirk Kempthorne, Secretary of the Interior from 2006-2009. He was a supporter of responsible offshore oil and gas development, and oversaw six lease sales and the continued growth of the deepwater sector.

One of those lease sales generated a record $3.7 billion in high bids (photo above). Lars Herbst was the Minerals Management Service’s Regional Director at the time.

I had the pleasure of briefing the Secretary on a couple of occasions and found him to be very personable, attentive, and intelligent. My colleagues were similarly impressed.

The Secretary was also known to ride his motorcycle to the Interior building on occasion. He is pictured on his Harley below, but this photo was taken in Idaho, not Washington. 😀

The organizers of the 2007 IRF Offshore Safety Conference were most pleased when Secretary Kempthorne agreed to participate as a keynote speaker. Our many international guests were impressed by his remarks and his interaction with the conference delegates. His conference bio and those of the other speakers are attached.

RIP Mr. Secretary! You served the country well. Enjoy cruising on that big motorcycle in the sky!

Speaker-BiosDownload

Read Full Post »

Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum’s confirmation hearing

Posted in energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, Offshore Wind, tagged , , on January 17, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Burgum on offshore oil and gas lease sales: “The fact that during the current administration the lease sales have been so unpredictable and disruptive, and the fact that they’re projecting forward to have among the fewest we’ve ever had, almost would guarantee that we would see a decline in energy production in offshore in the years ahead because of the lead times.”

Link to the full Senate confirmation hearing

Read Full Post »

Thoughts on the appointment of Doug Burgum as Secretary of the Interior

Posted in CCS, energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, Regulation, tagged , , , , , , , , on November 19, 2024| Leave a Comment »

  • The Secretary of the Interior is the most important energy production position in the US govt, particularly for the offshore sector.
  • In recent years energy policy has been increasingly influenced (if not directed) by White House staff, most notably the White House Climate Office. Given that Burgum will also lead the new created National Energy Council, direction from White House staffers or other departments should not be an issue.
  • Burgum should work effectively with Dept. of Energy appointee Chris Wright, an engineer who understands energy production.
  • There is no apparent Republican dissent, so Burgum should have no problem being confirmed.
  • All of the offshore policy forecasts in the post-election post still stand.
  • Burgum is currently the Governor of North Dakota. Some energy production stats for the state:
    • 2023 oil production: 435,080,323 bbls. ND is the 3rd leading oil production state behind TX and NM. Most ND production is from the Bakken formation (shale).
    • ND ranks 4th if the OCS, for which Bergum will soon be responsible, is included. The OCS ranked 2nd in oil production, behind only TX, despite seemingly being managed to fail.
    • 2023 gas production: 1.2 tcf. ND ranks 10th in natural gas production.
    • Current number of active drilling rigs: 39
    • Wind: In 2023, wind was the second-largest electricity generating source in ND behind coal. At the beginning of 2024, ND had about 4,000 megawatts of installed wind power generating capacity.
  • What about carbon sequestration (disposal)?
    • As Governor, Burgum supported CCS projects that could be lucrative for North Dakota.
    • As Interior Secretary and Energy Czar, he will have to consider the high Federal subsidy costs, efficacy, and net environmental benefits.
    • Companies looking to benefit from publicly financed CCS projects will lobby hard for Federal support. Budget hawks and most environmental activists will be strongly opposed. It will be interesting to see who prevails.
    • This blog has consistently opposed offshore carbon disposal.

Read Full Post »