Louisiana Governor Praises Judge's Ruling Against Drilling Ban

22nd Jun 2010 23:37

DOW JONES NEWSWIRES Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal welcomed a federal judge's ruling Tuesday against the Obama administration's temporary ban on deepwater offshore drilling, which was prompted by the giant oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. "We absolutely agree with the judge's conclusion that the administration's six-month, or longer, shutdown of deepwater drilling was 'arbitrary and capricious,'" Jindal said. The judge's decision, which was applauded by the energy industry, was in response to a lawsuit filed in early June by Hornbeck Offshore LLC (HOS), a small oil-services company based in Covington, La., that said it would be crippled because of the six-month ban, decreed May 28 by the Interior Department after the spill at a BP PLC (BP)-operated well. Hornbeck Offshore was soon joined by other small oil field-service companies and got support from the state of Louisiana. The White House responded to the ruling Tuesday by saying it would immediately appeal the injunction. It is unlikely that many companies will jump to restart drilling, given the complex legal maneuvering likely to come. Jindal pointed out in a statement late Tuesday that a ban on drilling threatens thousands of jobs in the state and hurts other businesses that supply oil-and-gas companies. "We absolutely do not want another spill or one more drop of oil on our coast or in our water, but thousands of Louisianians should not have to lose their jobs because the federal government can't adequately do their job of ensuring drilling is done safely," he said. Jindal also criticized the federal government for a "clear lack of urgency" in setting up a commission to study deepwater drilling. He estimated the state could lose more than 20,000 existing and potential new jobs in the next 12 to 18 months if the federal panel takes longer than six months to write its reports. -By Kathy Shwiff, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2357; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 22, 2010 18:37 ET (22:37 GMT)