The problem is, they're just sitting on that oil. The land was leased to them to drill for oil or gas, but they do nothing with it.
If you ask me, take their lease away, let another company go in there who
WILL drill for oil or natural gas! This was the intention of
the government leasing this land to begin with!
Their just sitting on that oil until the "time" is right to drill!
The oil companies play "Big Stakes" games! They should be told that they just lost "this" game!
Oil in the Bank: Are Leaseholders holding Out On Pumping?
• Oil companies collectively are not producing on 68 million acres, or about three-quarters of the federal lands and waters they have under
lease.
• More than 100 billion barrels of oil and gas resources are currently available on federal lands already leased or available for leasing by oil
companies.
And one of the reasons I've heard before , why they aren't drilling on these leases, is because it's sooo hard to get a permit to drill!
Well, that excuse doesn't hold water!
Between 1999 and 2007, the federal government increased the number of drilling permits by 361%. While the Bureau of Land Management issued 28,776
permits to drill on public land in the last four years, wells have not been drilled on over a third (9,822).
When the government leases land to oil companies as an oil or natural gas lease, they should be obligated to drill on that land just like coal leasers
have to mine for the coal or lose their lease.
Coal companies already comply with requirements that they diligently develop federally leased lands - why should oil companies be given special
treatment? My bill would create industrywide accountability standards, which many of the oil companies say they are already capable of meeting. So why
are they putting up such a fight?
After all, the quickest way to produce more oil is to develop lands already under lease since exploration is underway, leases and many drilling
permits are ready to go and the infrastructure, including miles and miles of pipeline, is already in place.
A
Coal Lease Contract with the government.
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT - COAL
LEASE
This lease is subject to the conditions of diligent development and continued operation, except that these conditions are excused when
operations under the lease are interrupted by strikes, the elements, or
casualties not attributable to the lessee. The lessor, in the public interest, may suspend the condition of continued operation upon payment of
advance royalties in accordance with the regulations in existence at the time of the suspension.
*****SKIP*****
Lessee shall submit an operation and reclamation plan pursuant to Section 7 of the Act not later than 3 years after lease issuance.
It works for the coal industry, why not the oil industry?
Drill on the land within 3 years or give up the lease and let somebody else drill on it!
[edit on 8/5/2008 by Keyhole]
