The Results Are In: Drilling Down On Unused Leases

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The Results Are In: Drilling Down On Unused Leases
Posted by Heather Zichal on March 29, 2011 at 1:38 PM EDT

On March 11, 2011, President Obama directed the Department of the Interior (DOI) to determine the acreage of public lands (onshore and offshore) that have been leased to oil and gas companies and remain undeveloped, noting that companies should be encouraged to produce energy from leases that they are holding. Today, the results are in.

The report reaches several important conclusions: first, although the Department of Interior has made available significant acreage for resource development over the past two years, substantial acreage has not been leased by industry. Secondly, there are tens of millions of acres that are currently under lease that remain idle. Because these areas are not undergoing exploration, development, or production, taxpayers are not getting the full advantage of America’s resource potential. When it comes to onshore oil and gas development, nearly 57 percent of all leased acres are inactive – meaning they are neither being explored nor developed. In total, 22 million leased onshore acres – acres already in the hands of oil and gas companies – are not being used. That’s roughly the size of Indiana.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/03/ ... sed-leases