Proof in Trial: Appellate Edition: Stand Up for California et al. v. U.S. Department of the Interior et al.
The permitting process has been identified by numerous commentators as a major cause of delays in the development of energy, infrastructure, and mining projects in the United States. ...more
The U.S. Department of the Interior (Interior) released a final rule that will protect millions of acres of Alaskan wildness from the development of oil, gas and minerals. Interior's Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which...more
The United States Department of the Interior published the final well control rule on Aug. 22 from the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE). The rule clarifies blowout preventer (BOP) system regulations and...more
Last year, the Department of Interior (DOI) updated its estimate of the number of orphaned or abandoned wells across the United States, documenting 130,000—more than double its previous estimate. The bipartisan 2021...more
The Biden administration's governmentwide approach to addressing climate change throughout all industries puts an unprecedented degree of pressure on traditional energy sources to prioritize innovation in order to sustain...more
First Quarter of Biden Presidency Impactful for Energy Industry - On January 27, 2021, President Biden signed Executive Order 14008 ("E.O. 14008"), implementing a temporary pause on the auction of new oil and gas leases...more
Yesterday, the United States Department of the Interior (DOI) held a public forum at which stakeholders from government, industry, non-profit groups and academia discussed their visions for the future of the federal oil and...more
On March 8, the DOI announced its plans to hold a virtual forum on Thursday, March 25, to discuss the federal oil and gas leasing and permitting program. The forum is the latest step in DOI’s ongoing review following...more
Dominion Energy and Duke Energy Cancel Construction of Atlantic Coast Pipeline - "Despite a recent win for the project in the US Supreme Court, ongoing delays, litigation and an expected increase in costs threatened the...more
Trump Infrastructure Proposal Impacts 'Virtually Every' Federal Decision on Environment: DOI Secretary - "Trump's announcement focused largely on road and highway impacts, but industry groups and environmentalists note the...more
In 2014, we wrote about efforts by the U.S. Department of Interior’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) to require less traditional parties to fund the decommissioning of idle oil and gas wells and related...more
On August 13, 2019, in a case that may have an impact on the leasing of federal lands for energy development in the future, the U.S. District Court for the Missoula, Montana Division, issued a ruling in the case of Western...more
This is the inaugural issue of WilmerHale’s 10-in-10 Hot Topics in Energy Series. Over the next 10 weeks, our attorneys will share insights on current and emerging issues affecting the US energy sector....more
On April 11, 2018, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) issued a Memorandum titled “Guidance on the recent M-Opinion affecting the Migratory Bird Treaty Act” (the “Memorandum”), giving field advice to its enforcement...more
Getting the Deal Through is delighted to publish the sixteenth edition of Gas Regulation. Getting the Deal Through provides international expert analysis in key areas of law, practice and regulation for corporate counsel,...more
On February 28, 2018, the Royalty Policy Committee (RPC) met in Houston to present recommendations for improving the Department of the Interior's (DOI) valuation of royalties from oil, gas, and coal produced on federal and...more
On Thursday, January 4, 2018, the Department of the Interior (DOI) announced a proposal to open 25 of its 26 offshore planning areas for leasing for oil and gas drilling, reversing an Obama Administration drilling plan that...more
The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of the Solicitor issued Memorandum M-37050, on December 22, 2017, which adopts the position that the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) prohibition on the “taking” or “killing” of...more
Report on the agencies’ review of programs provides a roadmap to understanding which energy policies the Trump administration will revise. Several federal agencies have now issued reports responding to Executive Order (EO)...more
On October 25, 2017, the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) released a report entitled “Review of the Department of the Interior Actions that Potentially Burden Domestic Energy” identifying agency actions that potentially...more
Welcome to Spilman Thomas & Battle's weekly energy news e-blast - Currents. The purpose of this communication is to provide a synopsis of the top news stories for the week, but with a twist. We recognize that you may already...more
Describe, in general terms, the key commercial aspects of the oil sector in your country. The US oil industry is divided into three sectors: upstream (exploration and production), midstream (processing, storage and...more
Scott Angelle took over as the Director of the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, May 23. Mr. Angelle is well known to the oil and gas...more
President Donald Trump’s recently signed Executive Order on Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth (the Order) includes significant revisions to the regulatory landscape both (1) directly in the case of oil and...more
As we reported, the House and Senate have passed a joint resolution under the Congressional Review Act disapproving the SEC Resource Extraction Rule and that President Trump was expected to sign the legislation that...more