AT A GLANCE: US Looks To Issue New Deepwater Drilling Moratorium

23rd Jun 2010 18:13

The News U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar told lawmakers Wednesday that he would take a look at issuing a new, scaled-back moratorium on new deepwater oil and gas drilling, after a federal judge overturned the Obama administration's moratorium on Tuesday. "We will in the weeks and months ahead take a look at how it is that the moratorium in place might be refined," Salazar told a subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee. The moratorium order "will include the criteria under which it is appropriate to take a look at the lifting of the moratorium," he said. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Tuesday the administration would appeal U.S. District Judge Martin L.C. Feldman's temporary injunction overturning the moratorium. At Wednesday's hearing by the Senate Appropriations subcommittee, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D., Calif.) said she supported the administration's plans to challenge the court ruling. The case's next destination is the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans, which is expected to put the case on a fast track. 'Substantive Reforms' Of Oil Agency Salazar told the lawmakers he has been working for more than a year on "substantive reforms" of the agency that oversees offshore drilling, defending his efforts as the BP PLC (BP, BP.LN) oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico puts scrutiny on the federal government. "The reforms we have embarked on over the last 16 months, and upon which we will continue to build, are substantive and systematic, not just cosmetic," Salazar told the subcommittee. The changes "do not come easily" and have "raised the ire of the industry," but are "crucial" to ensuring "balanced, responsible" energy development, he said. BP Formalizes Cleanup Responsibility Handover BP on Wednesday formalized the handover of responsibility for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill containment and cleanup operation from embattled Chief Executive Tony Hayward to Robert Dudley, who becomes president and chief executive of BP's newly created Gulf Coast Restoration Organization. The new organization "will manage all aspects of the response" to the Deepwater Horizon accident and the spill, "ensuring that BP fulfils its promises to the people of the Gulf Coast and continues its work to restore the region's environment," the company said. U.K.'s Cameron: BP Important To U.S., U.K. U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron told Parliament on Wednesday it was in the interests of the oil company's U.S. and U.K. shareholders that BP remains strong and stable. "We do want to make sure this remains a strong and stable company for our benefit and for the benefit of the U.S.," Cameron said. He said the energy firm is owned 40% by U.S. shareholders and 39% by U.K. investors and "employs more people in the U.S. than it does in the U.K. so it's in all our interests that this company is strong and secure for the future." Market Reaction BP's American depositary receipts were up 0.9% in recent trading to $29.95. The London-listed shares were down 0.2% at 333.50 pence. Shares of Transocean Ltd. (RIG), from whom BP leased the Deepwater Horizon rig, were up 1.5% to $53.24. Collection Efforts BP said Wednesday it has increased its capture rate from the broken Macondo well, collecting 27,090 barrels Tuesday, the company said on its website. BP flared 10,425 barrels of oil and captured 16,665 barrels of oil. The figures beat BP's numbers from Monday, when the company captured 25,830 barrels a day. In total, BP has recovered 325,700 barrels of oil since it put in place a containment cap and the flaring system. For more coverage of the oil spill, please search under the code BP for these stories: -BP Oil Containment Stopped After Gas Detected -US Coordinator -US Inspector General Reviewing Role Of MMS Employees In Spill -Lawmakers Weigh In On Ruling To Block Drilling Moratorium -NY State Pension Fund Sues BP Over Losses From Oil Spill >BP -US Interior Secretary: 'Substantive Reforms' Planned For Oil Agency -BP: 325,700 Bbls Of Oil Recovered Since Cap And Flaring System Installed -UPDATE: UK PM: Important BP Remains A Strong, Stable Company -BP Formalizes Handover Of Gulf Oil Cleanup Responsibility -MARKET TALK: Tropical Wave A Bigger Issue For BP Than Oil -US Senate Committee Introduces Offshore Drilling Bill -Obama Postpones Energy Meeting With Senators -WSJ Column: Blowouts Will Not Always Be Prevented -Louisiana Governor Praises Judge's Ruling Against Drilling Ban -Oil Companies, Rig Operators At Odds Over Who Pays For Idled Rigs (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 23, 2010 13:13 ET (17:13 GMT)