FILE PHOTO: Unused oil rigs sit in the Gulf of Mexico near Port Fourchon, Louisiana
The suit is the latest dispute between the oil and gas industry and the administration of President Joe Biden over leasing federal lands and waters for energy development. The lawsuit, filed in federal court for the Western District of Louisiana, comes after the Interior Department's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management on Wednesday finalized plans to conduct the lease sale. The final sale notice included new restrictions on development meant to protect the endangered Rice's whale.