IADC expresses disappointment with cancellation of lease sales

On 16 October, the US Department of the Interior announced that it was canceling the scheduled 2016 and 2017 Arctic Ocean oil and gas lease sales and denying requests to extend current Alaska offshore leases.

In response, IADC President and CEO Stephen Colville issued the following statement, “Hydrocarbon fuels will continue to meet the majority of the world’s energy demands for decades, and meeting that demand means pursuing hydrocarbons from ever more difficult resources, difficult reservoirs and locations, and doing it safely and responsibly. The Arctic is believed to contain 13% of the world’s yet to be found oil and 30% of its yet to be found gas, and thus represents an important area for exploration and development.”

“IADC’s members are supportive of drilling and oil and gas production in the Arctic and we are disappointed in the decision by the Department of Interior to cancel the future lease sales.”