|
The
NewsRoom
Release #: 3123
Date: August 19, 2004
MMS Provides
New Encouragement for Deep Gas
MMS has issued a new Notice to Lessees and Operators
(NTL) to further encourage the exploration for deep gas on the shelf
area of the Gulf of Mexico at ultra-deep depths, “NTL 2004-G16,
Suspension of Operations (SOO’s) for Drilling Ultra-Deep Wells Under
Salt Sheets.”
According to Gulf of Mexico
Regional Director Chris Oynes, “MMS learned from some companies that
the period MMS was using to grant suspensions of operations for
exploration beneath salt sheets at ultra-deep depths (greater than
25,000 feet) was very likely to be inadequate.” The suspension, which
extends the term of the lease, is necessary to allow adequate time to
conduct geophysical evaluations to find a drillable target.
MMS issued the NTL pursuant to 30
CFR 250.175(b), which governs the granting of suspension of operations
(SOO) for exploration beneath or adjacent to salt sheets. This NTL
provides guidance for operators to request SOO’s for drilling
ultra-deep wells affected by salt sheets and informs operators that a
departure may be obtained to the requirements contained in 30 CFR
250.175(b)(2).
To be eligible for such a
departure, the lease must have been in its primary term on or before
August 1, 2002; the potential target must involve drilling below
25,000 feet true vertical depth subsea; the operator of the lease must
have also acquired and interpreted full 3-D depth migrated geophysical
data beneath the salt sheet and over the entire lease area before the
end of the fifth year of the primary term; and the operator must
submit a reasonable schedule of work leading to the commencement of
drilling.
“MMS believes the ultra-deep
frontier offers the potential for significant resources, but with
accompanied high economic and technological risks,” said Oynes. “MMS
recognizes the importance of expediting domestic exploration to
address the critical national need. To that end, MMS sees that this
NTL is in the national interest to expedite exploration for new
sources of hydrocarbons at these ultra-deep depths.”
The Minerals Management Service is
the federal agency in the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages
the nation’s oil, natural gas, and other mineral resources on the
Outer Continental Shelf in Federal offshore waters. The agency also
collects, accounts for, and disburses mineral revenues from Federal
and American Indian lands. MMS disbursed more than $8 billion
in FY 2003 and more than $135 billion since the agency was created in
1982. Nearly $1 billion from those revenues go into the Land and
Water Conservation Fund annually for the acquisition and development
of state and Federal park and recreation lands.
Relevant Web Sites
MMS Main Website
Gulf of Mexico Website
Media Contacts
Debra Winbush
(504) 736-2597
Caryl Fagot
(504) 736-2590
MMS: Securing Ocean Energy & Economic Value for
America
U.S. Department of the Interior |