The Biden administration is one step closer to approving a controversial drilling project in Alaska that is expected to produce up to 629 million barrels of oil.
Administration said it is likely to approve the Willow project, a major ConocoPhillips business venture that would lock in oil and gas drilling in Alaska for 30 years.
An environmental impact assessment by the Home Office on Wednesday predicted the project could emit 278 million tons of carbon dioxide over the project’s 30 years – the equivalent of driving 59,900 cars for a year or fueling 60 new coal-fired power plants.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre stressed that Wednesday’s move was not final approval and the final decision would be made by the Home Office. Deb Haaland.
Haaland signed a letter as a member of Congress in 2020 criticizing the project.
“Now is not the time to quickly pursue approval for a huge new oil development project,” the letter said.
Climate activists rally to protest by urging President Biden to halt the Willow project outside the White House
The bipartisan congressional delegation from Alaska — two Republican senators and one Democratic congresswoman at large — issued a joint press release praising the move and calling for final approval of the project.
Rep. Mary Peltola, D-Alaska, said in a statement the drilling project will boost jobs and economic growth in her state.
“In the short term, this project will create thousands of well-paying union jobs and help boost Alaska’s economy. Over the long term, Willow’s revenues will support essential government services like public safety and investments in our education system,” she said.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released an analysis that said the government prefers a slimmed-down version of the proposed $8 billion National Petroleum Reserve project.
The BLM called for the project’s drill sites to be reduced from five to three and for the project to reduce the number of gravel kilometers, ice roads, pipelines and airstrips needed.
The goal is to “reduce the amount of surface infrastructure” for the project and reduce the impact on caribou and other wildlife.
Still, the Biden administration has pushed the project forward at a time when it’s under intense pressure from Republicans to boost domestic oil production. The GOP-led House of Representatives passed legislation last week that would prevent President Biden from draining the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) unless he approves new well leases for oil and gas companies.
Wednesday’s analysis is the final regulatory hurdle before a decision on approving the project, but the Home Office stressed today’s move “is not a decision on whether to approve the Willow project.”
Green groups furiously fight over Biden administration’s move towards approval.
The Biden administration is one step closer to approving a controversial drilling project in Alaska that is expected to produce up to 629 million barrels of oil
“It is outrageous that Biden appears ready to give the green light to the massively destructive Willow project, while prioritizing the oil industry’s profits over the future of polar bears and other Arctic wildlife,” said Kristen Monsell, lead attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity.
“Letting ConocoPhillips to go ahead with this dangerous plan breaks Biden’s promise to halt oil drilling on public lands,” she added. “This nonsensical project is a huge step backwards. We urge Biden to reject it in the final decision.
ConocoPhillips said in its own statement that it “welcomes and continues to review” the government’s environmental analysis, saying Wednesday’s decision “represents an important milestone in the permitting process.”
Erec Isaacson, President of ConocoPhillips Alaska, said his company is “ready to begin construction immediately” once a final decision is made.
Senator Joe Manchin, the moderate West Virginia Democrat who chairs the Natural Resources Committee, hailed the move as an “important step in restoring America’s energy independence and strengthening America’s energy security.”
While the project was approved under the Trump administration in 2020, it was struck down by a court in 2021 on the grounds that environmental testing and climate impact assessment were inadequate.
Rep. Bruce Westerman, R-Ark, expressed more cautious optimism about the Home Office’s move.
“Undoubtedly, we need these resources to become energy independent and secure our supply chains. I am pleased that the Biden administration is finally taking positive action on energy, but I will be watching closely what the administration includes in the final decision minutes,” he said in a statement to .
“While it has been a long and arduous journey to get back to this point, we have pushed hard as a delegation and are now one step away from Willow’s reapproval,” Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski said in a statement.
“Thousands of good union jobs — and immense benefits that will be felt across Alaska and across the nation — will remain in limbo pending a positive final decision.”