In a plan released Friday, the Department of Interior said it will hold just three oil and gas lease sales in American federal waters between 2024 and 2029. All three will take place in the Gulf of Mexico.that called for 47 lease sales, including some in Alaska waters.
The Trump plans were struck down in 2019 by a federal court, and when the Biden administration took office, it almost entirely eliminated plans for oil and gas leasing offshore Alaska.in federal waters within Cook Inlet in 2026. That’s now canceled. In a written statement, Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan expressed their disappointment in the decision, saying that it encourages reliance on foreign imports, including those from authoritarian countries whose interests are opposed to those of the United States.
Federal waters cover territory more than 3 miles offshore, where drilling tends to be more technically difficult and expensive. Oil and gas producers have been more interested in state-waters lease sales, which cover territory within 3 miles of shore. Last year, the Biden administration attempted to cancel a federal-waters oil and gas lease sale in Cook Inlet, but Congress overrode the decision and a sale took place in December.Interest in offshore drilling within the Arctic Ocean is even more limited: A 2008 lease sale attracted big bids, but after a disastrous Shell drilling season