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| Economy |
| Obama plans to expand oil drilling |
| 2011-05-15 |
[Iran Press TV] US President Barack B.O.Obama announces plans to increase sales of oil and gas reserves in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska, aiming to boost domestic production. ... and, shucks, there's a whole year and a half to go until the election... The new measures would extend annual leases of government owned tracts in the 23 million-acre area of the Alaskan National Petroleum Reserve (NPR) and other areas, Rooters reported. "We plan to lease new areas in the Gulf of Mexico...and work to create new incentives for industry to develop their unused leases both on and offshore," Obama said in his weekly radio and internet address. The move directs the Interior Department to conduct annual sales in National Petroleum Reserve, which had previously only taken place periodically. While stating that the measures "make good sense" in helping to reduce the country's dependence on imported oil, the president also acknowledged it would not immediately bring down the price of gasoline at the pump. Prices now top more than USD 4 per gallon in many states. Last week, the Republican-led House of Representatives passed measures to allow for more offshore drilling off the Alaskan, Pacific and Atlantic coasts as well as the Gulf of Mexico. The bills would also ease environmental review laws. The measures, however, are not likely to pass in the Democrat-dominated Senate. In March 2010, Obama announced a plan to increase drilling along the Atlantic coastline. Shortly afterwards, a moratorium was placed on drilling following the BP Deepwater Horizon oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. In October, the moratorium was lifted following pressure from Gulf coast politicians. NPR lies west of the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve. Oil companies have been lobbying for years to open up the wildlife reserve for drilling. Environmentalists have so far been able to protect the reserve from their repeated attempts to drill. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #13 work to create new incentives for industry to develop their unused leases both on and offshore That translates to, Break existing contracts. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2011-05-15 21:28 |
| #12 Let's ask Shell what their Alaska leases are worth after $4 billion on them? |
| Posted by: Zebulon Thranter9685 2011-05-15 19:26 |
| #11 O' Bullshit beter NOT be able to tell you your name, it'd mean you're on his radar, RIPE for taxing and trimming away YOUR cash into HIS account. |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2011-05-15 15:20 |
| #10 Always remember - never forget. Obama is a Liar I wouldn't believe him if he told me my own name. |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2011-05-15 12:59 |
| #9 This has just got to piss off the voting base on the left, particularly the environmentalists. I will be watching outside my window for the protesters. Oh wait, that's only when it's a Republican President is in the Oval Office! Oops, my mistake. Cue the crickets please!! BTW: JohnQC, spot on with your comments. Maybe this is Obama's way of justifying the move to the center to please the pundits, so they can call it a compromise to the conservatives? |
| Posted by: Delphi 2011-05-15 12:20 |
| #8 Next week he plans to decrease it for the carbon.. the week after ... golf for a month... then halt it then forget about it until just before the election with a crash drilling program by the new dept of energy oil monopoly. |
| Posted by: Water Modem 2011-05-15 11:26 |
| #7 Leases <> Permission..... |
| Posted by: Uncle Phester 2011-05-15 10:19 |
| #6 Re-election talk. The usual scenario. The House passes a pro-drilling bill to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign imported oil. POTUS hypes such innitiatives as his own knowing they will be deep-sixed in the Senate. He then blames the Republicans for being obstructionists. Nothing happens until the Senate make-up changes and there is a new POTUS. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2011-05-15 09:41 |
| #5 Yoda: No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try. Talk, particularly for the Dude, is cheap. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2011-05-15 08:14 |
| #4 work to create new incentives for industry to develop their unused leases both on and offshore Inceentives, you mean, like, tax breaks? Those things your Dem-controlled Senate are trying to take away? |
| Posted by: Bobby 2011-05-15 08:01 |
| #3 Look to see who Soros has "invested" in to see which company will "win" the bids. |
| Posted by: Bright Pebbles 2011-05-15 06:48 |
| #2 We plan to lease new areas in the Gulf of Mexico... ....to the Chinese or some other foreign, nationalized oil company no doubt. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2011-05-15 01:22 |
| #1 We plan to lease new areas in the Gulf of Mexico... Plan away, but until the oil companies see actual permits being issued, and the EPA getting out of the way (of Shell on the North Slope, for one), Zero may be disappointed in the bids. |
| Posted by: PBMcL 2011-05-15 00:39 |