Federal judge throws out oil lease sale in Gulf of Mexico

Date: January 27, 2022

Source: ABC News

WASHINGTON — A federal court has rejected a plan to lease millions of acres in the Gulf of Mexico for offshore oil drilling, saying the Biden administration did not adequately take into account the lease sale’s effect on planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions, violating a bedrock environmental law.

The decision Thursday by U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras in Washington sends the proposed lease sale back to the Interior Department to decide next steps. The judge said it was up to Interior to decide whether to go forward with the sale after a revised review, scrap it or take other steps.

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Talos Energy files notice with Mexico over disputed oil field

09/07/2021

Source: Mexico News Daily

A United States energy company has submitted notices of dispute to the federal government over a decision to take away its control of a shallow water oil field in the Gulf of Mexico.

Houston-based Talos Energy intends to fight the decision by the Energy Ministry (Sener) to designate the state oil company Pemex as the operator of the Zama field, which contains almost 700 million barrels of oil.

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Five killed in Mexico’s oil platform fire, hammering Mexico output

08/23/2021

Source: Reuters

MEXICO CITY, Aug 23 (Reuters) – Five workers were killed and six injured in Sunday’s fire on an offshore platform in the southern Gulf of Mexico operated by Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) that cut about a quarter of Mexico’s oil production, the company said on Monday.

The fire broke out as crews were performing maintenance on the platform, and a search for missing workers continues, Pemex Chief Executive Octavio Romero told a news conference.

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‘Eye of fire’ that erupted in Gulf of Mexico is under control, says Mexico-owned oil company

07/06/2021

Source: CNN

A blaze on the surface of the Gulf of Mexico resembling a large “eye of fire” has been brought under control, according to Mexico’s state-run oil company Pemex.

Orange flames resembling molten lava appeared to erupt from below the surface in videos that went viral on social media, which dubbed it an “eye of fire.” The fire broke out a short distance from a Pemex oil platform.

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Italian ship attacked by pirates in Mexico, two crew hurt

Photo by Kai Pilger on Pexels.com

11/13/19 – Reuters

By Lizbeth Diaz, Marianna Parraga and Ana Isabel Martinez

Pirates attacked an Italy-flagged offshore supply vessel in the southern Gulf of Mexico, injuring two crew members, the Mexican Navy said on Tuesday, in the latest outbreak of robbery and piracy to hit oil platforms and infrastructure in the area.

One of the crew members of the boat, “Remas,” received a bullet wound, and the other suffered a concussion, and both were transferred to a nearby hospital, the Navy said in a statement.

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Mexican pirates posing greater risk in Gulf of Mexico to oil workers, tourists

10/01/19 – FOX News

By Hollie McKay

In the calm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, drilling platforms hum away under the sunshine. But, in the dark of the night, they are becoming more and more subject to vicious attacks launched by modern-day pirates.

“Although oil and diesel stealing has been going on for decades, there has been an increase in criminal activity reported in the last four years,” Johan Obdola, founder of the Global Organization for Security and Intelligence, told Fox News. “It is estimated that the stealing in Mexico is up to 1.18 million barrels a day, bringing millions to criminal organizations, and making it very difficult to control.”

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Oil and gas leases in Gulf of Mexico bring in relatively tepid bids

03/21/2018 The Washington Post

Energy companies paid $124.8 million on Wednesday for oil and gas prospects in the largest Gulf of Mexico lease sale ever, but the winning bids fell well short of past sales.

The totals also appeared modest compared with the expectations raised by President Trump in his “America-First Offshore Energy Strategy” that was aimed at substantially enhancing the nation’s “energy dominance.”

Oil companies bid on 148 blocks, just 1 percent of the blocks put up for sale despite royalty breaks the administration provided for some of the shallower areas. The Interior Department’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management had put 77.3 million acres up for auction.

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Mexico to Auction 15 Shallow Exploration Blocks in Gulf

07/19/16 ABC News 

The Mexican government announced plans Tuesday for an auction of exploration and shared-production rights on 15 blocks of potential oil fields in the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

The blocks cover 3,440 square miles (8,908 square kilometers) and contain potential reserves of up to 1.58 billion barrels of crude equivalent.

Energy Secretary Pedro Joaquin Coldwell said that the blocks are expected to start producing oil by 2020 and that investment in the projects could reach $11.25 billion over the life of the contracts.

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Mexico, Cuba, U.S. discuss ‘Doughnut Hole’ in Gulf waters

Reuters 07/06/16 

Delegates of Mexico, the United States and Cuba met on Wednesday to discuss the limits of the Western Polygon, an area in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico that has oil and gas deposits but no clear boundaries, two sources close to the discussion said.

Talks about who owns what in the “Doughnut Hole” were spurred after Cuba and the United States announced they would restore diplomatic ties in late 2014.

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Mexico ruling party routed in regional vote on graft, gang violence

6/6/16 Reuters

Mexico’s ruling party lost several bastions in Sunday’s regional elections to the center-right opposition, dealing a heavy blow to President Enrique Pena Nieto for failing to crack down on corruption and gang violence.

The rout will help set the tone for the next presidential election in 2018, underscoring deep discontent over graft scandals and a sluggish economy, and throwing the contest open to contenders from both the left and right.

Early results from gubernatorial races in 12 of Mexico’s 31 states on Monday showed Pena Nieto’s ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, heading for defeat in seven of them, a result far worse than most polls had forecast.

Projected losses included two oil-rich strongholds in the Gulf of Mexico, Veracruz and neighboring Tamaulipas, both of which have been plagued by gang violence for years, as well as Quintana Roo, home to Mexico’s top tourist destination Cancun. All three have been run by the PRI for over eight decades.

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